Finding Hope
by duckers44
Summary: This is about Hercules Hansen and my OC Joanna Killian. She's a mechanic who works on the Jaegers and other random things while she's in the shatterdome. Takes place before the movie while Herc and Chuck are there before Raleigh arrives. Jo and Herc face down some ghosts from her past that keep popping up.
1. Chapter 1

"What have you done to this poor beauty?"

After pulling his helmet off Hercules Hansen glanced at the short female mechanic who'd been working on Striker for a couple years now. Glancing up at the big Jaeger he'd just gotten out of he sighed, "We took a beating tonight but still won."

From behind him his son Chuck snorted, "A sorry victory but one all the same."

Herc watched as the younger male stormed off down the walkway and then turned his attention back to the mechanic, "Job security right?"

"I suppose so," Joanna said as she shook her head before looking back at the pilot of this particular Jaeger for a moment. "Are you alright?"

He gave a sigh and then shrugged before flashing her a tired grin, "Stick kicking so I guess that's something." His tone suggested he might not be overly appreciative at the moment but it seemed more and more Herc wasn't quite all there.

Jo tipped her head as she looked at him, "You don't look like you just took down another Kaiju Herc."

Glancing at the woman he managed a little more genuine smile. He had to admit seeing her standing here with her overalls tied low on her hips and that white tank top that sported a few spots of grease from working hugging her chest did him good. Jo had no idea he was attracted to her and he intended to keep it that way, he enjoyed the light flirting that went on between them even if he did feel guilty about it some times.

Herc was perfectly aware that she was younger than he was by at least ten years if not more but that didn't seem to stop his attraction. She was spunky and didn't mind laying into him or Chuck when she thought they had been careless with the machine she took such pains to keep in working order for them.

It didn't hurt that she was also one of the few women in the shatterdome or that she had the darkest brown hair he'd ever seen. Unfortunately he'd never seen it down, obviously long hair wasn't all that great when one worked around machines all the time. She had the strangest eyes, a grey so light it almost couldn't be considered a color but they were striking all the same.

He had no idea while he admired her dark hair and light eyed combination she was doing the same. Jo kept her own feelings to herself, the red headed pilot probably didn't want anything to do with her beyond the work she could do on his Jaeger. She had never seen eyes so blue before even if she didn't get long looks as them, she didn't dare look him in the eye for very long.

"I've been at it long enough to know there will just be another one," he said with a shrug of his shoulders before pulling at the neck of his suit. After spending so much time in the thing he was ready to be out of it.

She sensed his discomfort and flashed him a quick grin that sent a sensation he couldn't fully describe through him, "Alright get out of here. I'll see what I can do with this mess."

Taking one more look at the Jaeger he shook his head, "Somehow you always come through. Thanks Jo."

Another one of those easy smiles that touched him deep down in a place he thought long since deep, "Like you said, job security. Now go take a shower and get some sleep, you look like crap."

He chuckled but left her to do her job now that his was over. Really the damage wasn't that bad but it would take a little time to repair all the same.


	2. Chapter 2

It was almost a full week before they saw each other again. Jo was sitting alone at a table in the mess hall, a tray of food in front of her half eaten. Her dark hair had slipped free of the clip she used to restrain it and brushed the edge of her jaw as she read from a bunch of papers on the table.

With his own tray in hand Herc glanced around briefly before heading towards her, "Mind if I sit?"

Startled Jo looked up from what she'd been reading and then gave him a smile when she realized who'd spoken, "Of course not, please there's plenty of room."

He wondered at that, surely she had friends who would sit with her or perhaps he was intruding on time she wanted to spend alone. Then why eat here in the mess hall with the rest of the grunts?

"Hopefully I'm not interrupting," he said fork poised over his food waiting for her to say something.

Jo shook her head, "No, I need a break from this… bullshit."

Surprised by the language he quirked a brow at her, "And what's that?"

With an exasperated sigh she picked up her fork as if only now remembering she had been eating, "A report, analysis of Striker's performance. Marshall wants updates and I hate putting this stuff together, it's a waste of time."

That seemed a little strange that Marshall wanted reports on her work though he supposed she had to document what she was doing somehow, "A waste of time?"

After swallowing the mouthful of mash potatoes she'd been eating she nodded her head, "Striker has never failed to perform exactly as expected, as needed but suddenly he wants reports?" She shrugged and pushed the papers away, "I'll admit my skills are with a wrench rather than typing up some BS to pass whatever inspection he's planning."

"So otherwise how's everything going," Herc said trying to turn the conversation to something else… less aggravating for her?

That grin flashed at him and she shook her head, "Smooth. It's alright otherwise. Anything new with you?"

Herc shook his head, "No, not really. Just getting in simulation hours when we're not out there doing our job."

She lifted a brow at him, "Sim hours? I wouldn't have thought you need that sort of thing after being out there as much as you have been."

Truth be told he didn't need the hours it was more just for something to do in his down time. The Kaiju had been fairly quiet the last week or so and he'd found himself needing something to keep him from thinking about things he didn't want to think about.

Namely the shapely little mechanic sitting across from him currently, "Keeps me sharp."

The look she gave him was skeptical to say the least but thankfully she didn't push… too much, "Should I start calling you Razor?"

Surprisingly he laughed at her comment and shook his head, "Hell no! Hercules is bad enough."

Before she could stop herself she let her eyes wander openly over him, "Why? Seems like a fitting name from what I can see." The blush that spread up her neck and cheeks was almost like the rising sun.

For a moment Herc was too stunned to say anything in response to her comment. Had she really just looked at him like that? He didn't want to think he was seeing something that wasn't there but damned if he wasn't thinking hard about it.

She couldn't believe she'd just said that out loud. Jo felt like melting into the floor or going up in flames of embarrassment. Honestly she'd always liked his name and he was a well maintained man, his biceps alone had her wondering just how strong he was but she'd never said anything aloud before now.

They were both saved from having to figure out how to overcome that awkwardness when Chuck suddenly joined them. He was obviously already finished eating judging from the empty tray he carried, "Hey old man… I was going to see if Marshall will let us take Striker out for a little while. Just do a patrol so we don't get rusty."

As they both looked at him he seemed to realize his father had company, "Oh… hey Jo." He gave her one of those arrogant but charming grins he had before he turned to face her a little. "You know I don't think I've ever seen you with your hair down."

She'd barely realized her hair was slipped free from the clip but now that he mentioned, "Hello Chuck. How are you?"

Jo lifted her arms to collect the loose hair and twist it back into the security of the clip she used. She was hardly aware of the look both men gave her as she stretched her arms back to manage the taming of her hair.

Herc was both relieved and annoyed Chuck had come over to the table to rudely interrupt them but his attention was pulled away from that as Joanna started fussing with her hair. The femininity of it seemed odd on her but at the same time he couldn't pull his eyes away from the rise of his breasts or the way she tipped her head to secure her hair back again.

What he wouldn't give to rip that damn clip out of her hair and see if it was only jaw length or perhaps longer in the back. Herc didn't know what had come over him but he was suddenly a little uncomfortable sitting there. His discomfort increased when he looked at Chuck only to realize he had been watching the show just as he had been.

"I'm great Jo. Hey why is it we've never hooked up," he said much to his father's horror.

Herc was a little hesitant to even look at the woman but she had recovered from her earlier embarrassment. How on earth did his son ever get dates? He knew there had been a few girls but none of them had lasted long and he was fairly sure Chuck had been with just about all the women around… expect Jo apparently.

"Hey… I bet it's because I think you're too arrogant by half?"

Normally Chuck would get irritated with such a comment but this time he merely shrugged as he looked across the table, "Confidence isn't arrogance sweetheart. Can't blame a man with my kill record for being confident."

She snorted as she shook her head and started to rise from her seat, "Hmm, last time I checked there were two pilots for Striker and as far as I know only one of them thinks the world owes him anything his little heart desires."

That said she turned and walked away from the table which made Herc smile though he hid it well. Not many women could set his son down like that and he hadn't missed that she'd paid him an off handed compliment in what she'd said.

"What the hell is her problem," Chuck said truly confused and Herc merely shook his head at the boy. Some things he would never learn, obviously the proper treatment of women was one of the many things still in need of learning.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Walking down the hall that evening Herc spotted Joanna again and quickened his pace to catch up with her, "I don't know why I do it but I apologize for my son's behavior."

Her bright grey eyes turned to him and she smiled, "Don't apologize for him Herc. He is what he is." She shrugged but he still felt like he needed to say something to make up for the way Chuck had spoken to her before.

"True but that's still my fault, I was the one who raised him," he said as he glanced down the hall realizing she wasn't headed towards the dorms. "Where are you headed?"

Jo lifted a brow at him and then grinned a little as she considered what to say, "I was headed up to the deck, it's not raining and I thought I'd get some fresh air while I could." After a brief hesitation that caused her to bite her lower lip she asked, "Do you want to come along?"

A refusal might have been in the cards if she hadn't bitten that full lower lip but after that Herc felt like he just might follow her off the highest bridge, "Sure. I was just headed back to my room."

It didn't take long to get up to the observation deck where they could go outside if they wanted. Amazingly the night sky was clear overhead and a million stars winked down at them. Jo lead him over to a spot where some containers of supplies sat and started climbing up one of them, "There's a better view from up here."

A minute later he was seated beside her and had to admit the view of the stars overhead was pretty nice. They were both stretched out on their backs and without looking over at her he smiled, "Come up here often?"

She laughed softly, "Every chance I get." A comfortable silence fell over them and for a long while they merely lay there looking up at the sky above them in peace.

It had been a long time since Herc had spent any time just relaxing like this. Usually his head started getting full and he couldn't stand it but oddly he wasn't bothered by the years of guilt on his shoulders at the moment.

Sitting up so he was leaning on one elbow he looked over at Jo, he had been thinking about one thing and couldn't help himself, "So you like my name eh?" He smiled at her and knew even though it was dark she was blushing.

Jo wrinkled her nose at him in an adorable gesture of frustration, "I suppose I said something along those lines."

She'd opened the door, he wasn't letting up just yet. Leaning closer to her Herc looked down at her for a moment, "Something along those lines." His voice was soft, his accent a touch thicker than usual as he looked at her. If it weren't for the deck lights the only way he'd be able to see her would be the moonlight but even so her grey eyes looked almost white just now.

Jo swallowed hard as she looked up at him, afraid to move because it might break whatever moment was happening. She ran her tongue over her lower lip as she looked up at him and saw it in his eyes, saw the exact moment when he decided to kiss her and she was powerless to stop it.

Slowly, achingly slow, Herc leaned down to her and hovered over her lips for the barest of moments. He wanted to give her a chance to pull away if she wanted to but she seemed frozen laying there. Part of him wanted to kiss her just to get her to do something while the other half was terrified she'd pull away in horror because an old man was making a move on her.

Afraid he might be the one to pull away Jo lifted her head to close the last inch of space between their mouths and pressed her lips to his. Warmth spread through her from the top of her head to the tips of her toes as he slowly took over the kiss. His tongue touched her lips asking tenderly for entrance which she granted him with a soft moan as the first stroke had her feeling a touch feverish.

The moan he heard went straight to the base of his spine and gripped him hard. God he hadn't heard anything like that in a long time and he suddenly wanted to hear it again. As he swept his tongue into the warmth of her mouth Herc pressed against her, half laying on top of her. She took it a step further and moved her legs to allow one of his thighs to slip between hers.

He felt her hands on his shoulders and couldn't have be drug away from her for the world. Cupping her face he deepened the kiss for a moment before it hit him how much he wanted her. The little mewl of protest when he broke the kiss finally pulled at him somewhere south of his belt, woman was going to drive him nuts.

Opening his eyes to look down at her he shook his head, "You are a very beautiful woman Jo."

The smile she shined on him was brilliant as she brushed her fingers against the stubble of his jaw, "I think I said something along those lines too didn't I?"

Herc laughed, "I believe it was about my name being fitting. In your case I'm not sure such a small name does you justice."

Unable to stop himself he leaned down again to kiss her, letting the sensations wash over him for a long time before he drew back again. Herc certainly hadn't planned on something like this happening but he couldn't say he was disappointed, Jo was an amazing woman from what he knew.

Pressing close to him Jo looked up at him with heat in her eyes, unaware how badly she'd wanted him until right now. She also hadn't realized she'd wrapped herself around him, one leg hooked over his hip while her hands traveled over his arms, shoulders, and back. Dear lord was the man built and she was certainly appreciating it at the moment as she let her fingers trace the hard lines.

She bit her lower lip as she looked up at him, "Herc…"

Whatever she'd been about to say she didn't get the chance because he dropped his mouth over hers again and stole the words. She supposed she'd been about to tell him this wasn't a good idea but he'd saved her from saying it and she let herself be pulled deeper into the kiss.

The brush of his thigh against the junction of her own caused her to gasp into his mouth and arch against him. Her hands gripped his shoulders as her eyes shot open to look up at him only to find him staring down at her. He groaned at her reaction and did it again enjoying the way it made her arch against him, the way her eyes darkened with desire as he moved against her.

Herc could hardly believe he was doing this but it felt so damn good. She wasn't pushing him away either, in fact seemed to be trying to pull him even closer the more he moved against her. Jo was so responsive and her soft moans were sweet music to his ears. Wanting to hear more he slipped a hand up her ribs to cup one of her breasts through the thin fabric of her tank top.

He got the response he'd been looking for. Joanna moaned and pressed into his hand as her head dropped back. Even as he rocked his hips to brush his thigh hard against her she was lifting her own hips to match him. He was hard against her leg firmly trapped between his but the friction didn't ease the strain he suddenly felt.

Tweaking her nipple between his fingers he scattered kisses down her neck. Jo ran her short nails through his hair grazing his scalp in a way that had him groaning against her collarbone. Sweet Jesus she was hot and every time she moved with him Herc felt closer to losing control.

Finally he couldn't take it and slipped his hand up to grab the neckline of her tank top. He pulled it down along with the cup of her bra as his lips followed the path of exposed skin. If he'd thought her moans were sweet before the sound she made when he took a hard nipple into his warm mouth made him fear he'd come right then. He kneaded her other breast before scrapping the stubble on his chin against the sensitive skin carefully, his eyes going up to her face to see her flushed and definitely enjoying his attention.

Cradling his head in her hands Jo looked down at what he was doing to her and felt liquid heat pooling between her thighs. The man certainly knew what he was doing and she was helpless to stop him even if she wanted to. His name was soft and a mere whisper as she tipped her head back as he brushed his chin over one sensitive nipple then the other, "Herc…"

Hearing his name on her lips was as sweet as honey to him as he dropped his mouth back to one creamy breast. The strain of his cock against his pants was starting to get more than just a little uncomfortable but he didn't think this was exactly the place for what he had in mind. Herc sucked at one nipple before releasing the peak to lift his head, "Jo… I think-"

His words were cut off by a voice from below them, "Hey! Who's up there?"

Startled by the male voice Herc had to shake some of the haze of desire from his head, someone had caught them up here making out. Feeling very much like a green youth caught red handed Herc looked down at Joanna with a half grin before pushing away from her to his feet.

Moving to the edge of the shipping container Herc looked down at the young man who was shining a flashlight up at him, "Do you always go around yelling at people?"

Embarrassed the young man lowered the light beam so it wasn't in Herc's face, "Sorry sir. Some of the… younger crowd like to hide out on top of the containers and get into all kinds of trouble."

Considering what he'd just been doing he could only imagine what sort of trouble others could find. There weren't very many private places in the shatterdome, this was probably one of the better ones.

"It's alright Private, go on with you then," Herc said as he moved away from the edge of the container only to discover Jo had disappeared while he'd been distracted by the guard.

Surprised to see her gone he stood there with a blank expression on his face for a long moment, had he done something wrong? He thought about it and didn't think he had, Jo had certainly seemed to enjoy everything he done to her. With a heavy sigh he ran a hand over his head before sitting down again, "What the hell?"


	3. Chapter 3

Herc didn't come across Jo for another few days, she seemed very good at avoiding him no matter where he looked for her. She wasn't in the mess hall at meal times and she didn't seem to be around Striker a whole lot when he was there. He had the feeling she was purposely trying to stay away from him and it was frustrating, why?

When he did find her she was elbow deep in grease, some of it smudged across her cheek as she cursed at whatever she was working on. Leaning against a metal support beam Herc crossed his muscled arms and watched her work. With her back to him she had no idea he was there watching her.

Whatever she was working on it required a hammer and he watched as her toned arms flexed with the effort of wielding the tool. Like always her overalls were tied loosely around her hips and she wore a tank top, a dark blue this time. Her dark hair was in a ponytail high on her head and swung as she moved to slam the hammer against the metal she was flattening.

The amount of cursing coming out of her mouth was both impressive and surprising, did she always swear when she worked on things? Herc was amused as he watched her pounding some metal into shape for whatever purpose she intended it for, "Looks like a good way to work out frustration."

Surprised Jo swore as she jumped, dropping the hammer. She didn't turn right away to face him even though she'd been expecting this at some point. Slowly she did turn to look at him and the look on her face was guilt. Jo gave him a polite smile as she leaned back against the workbench she'd been standing at, "Hello."

"Hi stranger," Herc said as he remained where he was and watched her quietly for a moment. He didn't understand what had happened the other night and wanted to know but at the same time didn't want the drama of whatever might be going through her head. Hell he wasn't any good at this, the last woman he'd spent any time with outside of a bed had been his wife.

Jo reached a hand up and brushed hair from her eyes, "I don't suppose this is about Striker."

He merely lifted a brow at her but said nothing as he stood there looking back at her.

"Yeah… didn't think so. Look I… just felt like things were moving a little too fast and I-"

"Went awol?"

She wrinkled her nose at him in a way that had him thinking she was more adorable than was good for either of them, "Well yes, that's one way of putting it."

Herc watched her for a long moment before sighing softly and pushing away from where he was leaning on to move a little deeper into the shop, "So do you want to tell me what's going on?"

The raven haired beauty looked at him with those big eyes quietly for a moment and then sighed as she ran a hand over her face, "Will it make a difference if I tell you how stupid I am?"

He laughed and shook his head as he approached her but stopped a few feet from her, "No."

There was that little nose wrinkle again, "I'm sorry Herc. It _was_ moving too fast though and I'll admit I might have panicked."

"Might have," he questioned with a grin. Herc wasn't going to baby her, she's the one who'd disappeared the other night leaving him high and dry. That fact that she'd admitted she had panicked surprised him a little though. "Do I get to know where I went wrong to cause you to panic?"

Jo looked at him quietly for a moment, chewing her lower lip as she considered what to say to him first. "You didn't do anything wrong, the opposite actually." That got another quirked brow from him as she stood there trying to put into words what she'd been feeling all week.

For a long time she'd liked Herc and kept that to herself, their age difference was a factor but it was more than that. A lot of it had to do with her past and some of the stuff she'd gone through before getting here.

With an exasperated sigh she shook her head, "Ah hell Herc I'm not good at this stuff. I'm not… relationships are my worst area and-"

Lifting a hand he cut her off, "Wait, now hold on just a second. When did the jump to relationship get made?"

A little taken back Jo looked at him with such surprise on her face he was hard pressed not to grin. Herc wasn't thinking of whatever this was between them as just a random fling but he didn't want her making any assumptions either.

"I… I just didn't think you were the sort of guy to… be casual," she said as she looked at him as if he'd grown a second head or something.

Her opinion of him made his chest swell a little, at least she had a high opinion and finally he couldn't keep the slow smile from spreading across his face. "I'm not," he said as he moved to stand beside her, leaning his hip against the bench so he was facing her.

Relief spread across her face and she smiled at him, "Jeeze, you had me worried there for a moment." She shook her head as she realized she really had been relieved he wasn't that sort of guy, "But… it doesn't change the fact that I'm… I'm not good at stuff like this."

Herc watched her face quietly and couldn't help himself, "So this is one of those 'It's not you it's me' things?"

"Not to sound cliche… but yeah I suppose it is," she agreed though she didn't look happy to be doing so. She was a mix of confusing at the moment.

On one hand Herc knew how she had responded to him, how her body had told him she'd been enjoying his attention. Yet here she was in front of him apparently ready to write the whole thing off without even giving it a chance. Herc was a little torn, he had enough on his plate without a wish-washy woman on his hands. At the same time he didn't think Jo was that sort of woman and he liked her, genuinely liked her spunkiness as well as her down to earth nature.

At the moment she seemed flustered, obviously just as torn as he was, "Herc… I just, I've never really been with anyone. It's been just me for a long time and I don't want to toss that baggage at you."

Tipping his head he thought about what she was saying, "So you're afraid."

That got her feathers in a bunch, "I'm not afraid of you or whatever… this is. It's not about being scared of anything."

"Then what is it about," he asked as she fluttered her hand between them to punctuate what she was saying. Seeing her so flustered was amusing bordering on cute. She was flush and more than a little scattered as she tried to get him to understand whatever it was she was trying to tell him.

Brushing a hand over her face she was quiet for a moment as she tried to find the words, "Herc… it's just that I don't want to get into this and have you figure out just what a basketcase I am."

"Woman are basketcases in general so I got that one down already," he said with a grin that earned him a punch in the arm. "You're getting worked up for nothing. We don't have to rush anything, let's just see where it goes."

For a moment she looked at him obviously not believing what he was saying and then she relaxed visibly enough to make him chuckle, she really had gotten herself worked up since the last time they had been together.

"So you're not mad," she asked with concern in her voice.

With a shrug Herc shook his head, "I suppose I should be but… after getting over the surprise I can understand. Doesn't make me like it but I do understand."

The smile she gave him was bright but it was fleeting, "I'm not kidding though Herc, I have a boatload of baggage."

"Are you trying to scare me off?"

She shook her head at him as she realized what she was doing, "No, not really. Sorry, I'm just… like I said I'm not good at this sort of thing."

After a moment of hesitation Herc reached out and wrapped an arm around her shoulders careful not to get grease on himself as he pulled her into his side, "You're over thinking it so relax. Let's just see what happens. Go with the flow sweetheart."

She wrinkled her nose at him and then rested against him comfortably for a moment, "Alright, I think I can manage that."


	4. Chapter 4

After asking three other mechanics where he might find Jo Herc was finally zeroing in on her. Over the last couple weeks they had spent some time together, nothing that would lead anyone to think they might be dating or anything. While neither of them were ashamed of whatever was happening they didn't exactly want the whole world to know about it either.

The awkward part was that Chuck knew about it and he seemed pissed about it. The fact that they drifted together meant they had no secrets from each other. Herc hadn't thought about it when he'd gotten into Striker with his son the first time after he and Jo had settled into a kinda, sorta relationship but Chuck had laid into him shortly after that.

He hardly had to answer to his son of all people but he felt like he should at least have thought ahead to the drift. The tension between Chuck and himself now could be cut with a butter knife but until the younger male was ready to deal with it Herc was leaving well enough alone.

As it was Chuck was storming around like a three year old so Herc decided to go find company with someone far less moody. Jo was still working or so he'd been told because she wasn't answering his call. Instead of sitting around to wait for her he'd gone looking plus he was curious about what she did all day while he was busy with his own duties.

A beefy mechanic directed Herc to a platform that was empty as far as he could see other than equipment of various kinds. Moving to stand there he looked around a little lost for a moment until he glanced back at the big guy who pointed down.

Confused Herc moved to the edge of the platform and looked down only to discover Jo hanging by a harness with goggles over her eyes and a blow torch in her hand. She was obviously welding something back into place, the skill seemed a little impressive for a woman who seemed so little hanging against the leg of a jaeger.

He watched her quietly and shook his head, the woman was certainly never boring that was for sure. Herc had never met anyone like her in all his years. Women weren't so independent in his day so it was an adjustment for him to say the least. He'd never met a woman who was so good at a variety of different things.

Finally Jo shut off the torch in her hand and pushed the goggles back so they sat on top of her head. She spent a moment inspecting her work and then tipped her head back enough so he could see her face.

With a chuckle Herc shook his head, leaning on the railing of the platform so he could look down at her, "Now that's an attractive look."

"What look," she asked with confusion as she saw him standing thirty feet above her.

Herc used his finger to trace a line on his face where her goggles had been, "The reverse raccoon?"

With a laugh she lifted a hand to her face and rubbed at the soot on her face only to make it worse instead of better, "Yeah well you weren't suppose to be around to see it. I was going to call you after I'd showered."

"I guess that means you haven't checked your messages," he said as he watched her start putting things away in the tool belt around her hips that had to weigh more than she did.

Jo made sure she had everything, "No, I can't hear it when I weld sorry babe."

If anyone had ever called him that before Herc would have promptly put an end to it but the way she said it made him willing to let it slide. She didn't call him that when there were other people around which he appreciated a great deal.

"Well get your behind up here and I'll just tell you what the message was," he said leaning on the rail while he watched her start to work her way towards him.

From above them someone shouted which caused both of them to look up to see what the yelling was about. At first Herc didn't see why someone was yelling nor could he make out the words being shouted down at them. He glanced down at Jo with question in his eyes only to see her pale.

The hairs on the back of his neck stood on end and a sense of dread filled him as he looked back up. This time he made out the shape of something falling and falling quickly. He knew he could get out of the way but it hit him just then that Jo was dangling at the end of a rope with little to nowhere to go, "JO!"

She had already realized what was going on and was trying to swing out of the way but there was very little for her to grab on to. If she could get to the side far enough she could hang on to the underside of a walkway but it was more than a little bit of a stretch for her.

Feeling sick to his stomach Herc could do nothing but watch as she swung from one side to the other trying to get somewhere out of the way. The helpless feeling that squeezed like a vice around his chest was unsettling, he'd gotten far more attached to this young woman than he'd first thought.

Clattering above made Herc look to see how close the large pieces of metal were only to feel his stomach drop into his shoes, they bounced off this platform and then that one changing directions every time. It was almost as if it was in slow motion as he stepped back to stay clear of the debris falling so quickly.

The clattering of metal on metal was deafening as it passed him and for a moment Herc felt like he couldn't hear anything, as if the whole place had gone silent. Something icy gripped his heart as he moved back to the edge of the platform, careful this time because the railing had been damaged. His eyes searched for Jo and when he saw her the sickness in his stomach threatened to follow the still clattering metal pieces.

Hanging from the end of her harshness Jo was limp, blood running down the side of her head as she spun on the rope and swung slowly. As she turned he saw that her left arm had also been cut, blood dripped from her fingers as she hung there.

With a cry of outrage and fear Herc looked around wildly for some way to get to her. His eyes went to the wench that hooked to her harness but the controls were attached to the belt she wore. He searched the platform he stood on and after kicking some stuff out of the way he found a long pressure washer nozzle attached to it's hose.

Quickly he grabbed it and unscrewed the water hose from it thankful the water was off but honestly he couldn't have cared either way. Once free of the hose he used not the smooth end the water shot out of but the handle end in hopes he could hook the rope with it.

Moving back to the railing Herc looked down at Jo who hadn't moved since he'd let her out of his sight for the moment it took him to find something to help him. He was careful but realized his arm along with the pressure washer attachment were just a little too short. With a curse he leaned out as far as he could and after a few attempts finally snagged the rope.

"Someone help," he yelled at the top of his lungs when he was able to get his hands on the rope that would allow him to pull Jo up. Despite her small size she was still dead weight at the end of a long rope and it strained his muscled arms as he started pulling her up as best he could.

Even though chaos seemed to have broken out as the debris fell others came running when he called for them and they realized what was going on. With the help of two other men they were able to pull Jo up to the platform. Only after he was sure they would hold the rope did Herc let go as he dropped to his knees at the edge of the platform to grab the dangling woman so he could pull her to him

He cradled her in his arms unsure what to do at first, her head was bleeding near her hairline where she must have been struck while her left shoulder had a large gash and looked out of place. Swallowing the fear he felt rising in him Herc lifted her and stood, holding her bridal style as he turned to head quickly towards the infirmary.

The time it took to get there seemed to take forever as if it were passing at half the normal speed. Herc couldn't bring himself to look down at the lifeless face resting against his chest. He just had to get her to a medic and quickly. She couldn't be dead, there was a faint pulse in her neck when he'd looked for it. Jo was a strong woman… a few cuts wouldn't kill her… he prayed.

For the first time in a long time Herc actually prayed. He wasn't sure where the relationship with Jo was going but he wanted to find out. He hadn't felt this way about anyone since his wife and was loath to let it go now. Lowering his mouth to her forehead he whispered, "Hold on Joanna… hold on damn it."

Reaching the infirmary there was a flurry of activity as nurses and medics took over. Herc was pushed aside once he'd laid Jo down on a gurney. They cut away her tank top that was blood soaked and worked to stop the bleeding that had coated the side of her face in bright red. Her shoulder was dislocated and as he watched them pop the joint back together Herc was thankful Jo wasn't awake for any of this. Watching made him sick so he couldn't imagine what it would feel like.

"We're moving her to the far end of the infirmary where it will be quiet," said a nurse who had touched Herc's arm to get his attention. "You are welcome to see her there sir."

With a nod of his head Herc moved aside so the nurse could move Joanna to the opposite end of the hall they used for patients. Thankfully the space went mostly unused for the most part as those who went out came back whole or not at all. Illness was the biggest thing to treat here being as confined as they were at times.

"Sir… do you need some scrubs? I can get you a shirt if you'd like," said the nurse after she had everything settled for Jo. Confused by her words Herc looked at himself only to realize he had more than just a little blood on him.

With a shake of his head Herc waved her off, "No… I'll get cleaned up and come back." The nurse nodded her head and assured him Jo would most likely be out for some time yet which would allow him to get into fresh clothing.

"Is she… is she going to be alright?"

The nurse looked at him with a little pity and then shrugged briefly, "The doctor didn't know sir. She lost a good deal of blood and it all depends on how bad the damage is to her head. We did what we could, scans show everything is as it should be but head wounds can be… difficult."

That wasn't all that reassuring to say the least but Herc took it for what it was. The doctor had done what he could and now they had to wait, that was a story Herc was used to hearing at this point.


	5. Chapter 5

With a soft groan Joanna tried to move her body which she noted hurt pretty dang badly at the moment. Her movement caused her to hiss in pain as she tried to open her eyes, which she didn't understand why they were so hard to open in the first place. Where was she? Laying as still as she could after her shoulder protested her trying to sit up she peeked open one eye. When she adjusted to the light over head she ventured into opening the other eye.

The fluorescent lights overhead were not the ones that hung over her bed in her room. Confused she turned her head to see where she was and pain started throbbing deeply in her temple. _Well that's wonderful_, she thought to herself as she squinted through the pain trying to figure out what was going on around her.

It was almost dead quiet wherever she was and it took her longer than it probably should have to realize there were curtains, a dingy cream color, that hung all around her. _What in the hell_… she tried to sit up again and gasped in pain as she lay back. After a moment and when the pain eased she looked down at her shoulder only to find bandages there beneath what appeared to be a hospital gown.

Her eyes lifted when she heard a soft snore and she realized she wasn't as alone as she'd first thought. In an uncomfortable looking chair, legs stretched out and propped up on the end of her bed, sat Herc. His muscled arms were crossed over his chest, head cocked to the side at an uncomfortable angle and fast asleep. Someone had half covered him with a blanket that looked scratchier than her tongue felt.

For a long moment Jo lay there just looking at him trying to get her brain to start working properly. Slowly it started to come back to her. She remembered seeing him on the platform after she'd finished the patch job she'd been doing. Then what had happened and why was she here… where the hell _was_ here?

It took her a few beats to catch up and realize with the bandages on her shoulder she must be in the infirmary. Why? Because there had been… falling metal. That's right she'd been hanging helplessly from her harness with no where to go. Obviously she had been hit which explained the pain in her shoulder. Lifting a hand to her head where it was throbbing her fingers encountered another bandage, well that made sense she supposed.

Jo hated to wake him but her mouth was dry and she could barely swallow, she needed something to drink. When she attempted to speak her voice came out as a croak more than an intelligible word. How long had she been out? Herc didn't wake at the sound and she sighed softly before reaching out with her good arm since he was sitting on that side, "Herc?" This time she managed the word and sounded a little more like herself.

As her fingers brushed the tattoo peeking out from beneath the sleeve of his t-shirt Herc jerked awake and about fell out of his chair as he tried to sit up too quickly. Tangled in the blanket there was an awkward moment of cursing as he tried to get free to turn to her. Finally he managed it and sighed as he ran a hand over his roughed face, "Jo! Thank god."

She gave him a smile and let him take her hand feeling like he needed to touch her to be sure she was actually awake. Swallowing as best she could she managed, "Water?"

Flustered he nodded his head and turned to the nightstand beside the bed to pick up a plastic pitcher which he used to fill a cup, "Nurse brought this for me a while ago but it should still be fairly cold."

He got to his feet and attempted to help her take a sip from the cup with a shake of his head, "A straw would make this a little easier, sorry I don't have one love."

After a few sips she smiled and waved him off, "Thank you."

A moment later he was sitting on the edge of the bed facing her with her hand between his, "Jesus you gave me a scare."

Noting the stubble on his jaw she lifted a brow, "How long have I been out?"

"It's been 49 hours," he said softly and the look on his face said it had been a rough time for him to say the least. He was using hours not days… which meant he'd probably hadn't gotten very far from her side since the start of all this. No wonder he looked a little rough around the edges.

Squeezing his hand Jo smiled as she closed her eyes, "Well I'm still here. How bad is it?"

He was shaking his head as she opened her eyes again and now she could see there was relief mixed in with the exhaustion, "pretty bad cut on your shoulder and on your head but they stitched it up pretty good from what I could see of it. Not sure how bad the shoulder is, it was dislocated when I brought you in."

A wince claimed her features as she looked at him in concern, "Herc… have you slept at all?"

With a heavy sigh he lifted a hand to run over his short hair, "A little here and there but the nurse comes every hour to check your vitals. She's been pretty good about being quiet but…"

He didn't have to say it she could see it on his face, he'd been worried about her and it had taken it's toll on him. If it weren't for the pain in her shoulder Jo would have hugged him, as it was she could only squeeze his hand again.

Just then the nurse joined them and a bright smile spread across the pretty blonde's face, "Well look at that. Thought I heard voices back here and thought I would check it out. How are you feeling Miss Killian?"

Without thinking about the action first Jo shrugged in response only to hiss as pain spread through her shoulder when she moved it. A curse slipped from her lips and the nurse nodded her head, "Ah well let me just get the doctor and something for that pain then." She glanced at Herc before she left and flashed him a smile Joanna wasn't in too much pain to miss.

Once sure the woman wouldn't overhear them Jo cocked a dark brow at him, "She seems awfully friendly."

It took him a moment to catch on but he shook his head, "Aw come on Jo you can't think-"

"No I don't, I was _teasing_ you Herc relax," she said with a grin as the tension that had spread across his shoulders visibly eased. Jo shook her head carefully at him and smiled, "I was kidding. You need some rest buddy."

He didn't argue with her as he chuckled and then leaned forward so he could press his forehead to her's, "You scared me Jo… I don't think I can handle that again."

Looking into his eyes she felt tears understanding how hard it must have been for him to say those whispered words. Herc wasn't very good at fessing up to his feelings but so long as they didn't directly talk about it he was pretty good at showing her how he felt in some way or another. Hearing him say the words made her heart skip a beat, which one of the various monitors hooked up to her registered and beeped loudly.

Herc lifted his head to look at the machines before looking back down at her, "Are you ok? Did that before and the nurse had to come back here to check on you."

Jo laughed softly and managed only a small wince at the pain it caused her, "Yeah… I'm fine."

Thankfully the doctor came and confirmed that she was doing alright shortly after that. He explained how she was doing with the healing, pretty well from what she could understand of all his medical jargon. Herc seemed to understand more of it than she did but despite being out for two days she was still exhausted.

Only after the doctor had given the ok for some pain meds and the nurse was gone did she yawn, "Well… looks like you're still stuck with me."

Already whatever drug the nurse had put in her IV was working and she was starting to feel pretty good. Herc rolled his eyes at her and sighed as he returned to sitting on the side of the bed, "Oh shut up. Stuck with _you_… ha more like you are stuck with me. I'm definitely not going anywhere."

"Good then come over here and lay with me, you look like I feel," she said with a grin so he would know she was merely teasing him. The fact that he didn't protest but carefully lay beside her and then let her snuggle up to his side said a lot for just how tired he was.

Brushing her nose against the arm she was hugging Jo inhaled his clean smell and smiled as she closed her eyes, "You know I dreamt about you."

He kissed the top of her head and chuckled softly, "Did you?"

Jo wrinkled her nose at him but didn't open her eyes as she was already starting to drift off, "Yeah… we were on vacation or something I think. We were on a beach, just soaking up the sun. You were _so_ white." Her laugh was soft and only lasted a moment as she wavered between awake and asleep.

Herc laughed as he looked down at her and shook his head, "Sadly that's probably not far from the truth. I'm a ginger after all."

The only response he got was a murmur and she was quiet beside him. Herc smiled and kissed her head again before laying his head down, almost asleep just as quickly as she was. Their fingers laced together, her head on his shoulder, they looked quite the pair in a tiny hospital bed of all places but they were sound asleep.


	6. Chapter 6

If the music hadn't given her away the cursing he heard as soon as he went into the shop would have. Herc had expected to find Jo in her room but of course she hadn't been there so the next logical place was here. She wasn't supposed to be back to work yet though and he fully intended on chewing her out for pushing herself. He wasn't any better of a patient but she wasn't fully healed yet for heaven's sake!

She was currently standing at her work bench, sling cast off to the side much to his annoyance, with her back to him working on god only knew what. Herc shook his head as he walked up to her listening to mumbling issuing from her at the moment, obviously whatever she was working on wasn't coming out the way she wanted it to. "What's wrong? Not working the way you think it should?"

Jo jumped and turned to face him with a guilty look on her face which didn't surprise him, she should look guilty at the moment. She'd told him she would take it easy and in his mind this wasn't exactly taking it easy, it was only two days after she'd been released from the infirmary after all.

"Well… no… not really," she said before biting her lower lip as she looked at him with those grey eyes. Fidgeting she reached up to tuck hair, the dark locks down for a change reached her shoulders, behind an ear as she tried to come up with an excuse for being here. He could just see the gears in her head working but in the end she failed to come up with anything she thought would satisfy him.

With a sigh she shook her head, "Look I was going nuts just sitting around and I-"

Holding up a hand he shook his head at her, "You don't have to say it. You are a terrible patient, I told the doctor he shouldn't release you yet."

That got him a look because she knew he'd been talking to the doctor who'd extended her stay in the infirmary by a full day more than the usual three he kept people for.

"Don't give me that look little lady, you know full well you should be resting your arm," he said as he closed in on her. Putting a hand on either side of her as he leaned in slightly, "What am I going to do with you Jo?"

She wrinkled her nose at him, "You need ideas?"

Herc couldn't prevent the grin that spread across his face as he shook his head, "No, I've got plenty of my own ideas."

Suddenly he gripped her hips and lifted her smoothly to sit on the bench so they were at eye level with each other, "I just worry you'll damage yourself."

A startled laugh escaped her and her hands went to his shoulders as he lifted her, her eyes going to watch the flex of muscle as he set her on the bench. Shaking her head at him she smiled a little sheepishly, "I'm not pushing myself too hard Herc I just need something to do, I'm not an idle person most of the time."

And that was true he'd give her that. Jo liked to be busy he'd learned. Whether is was tinkering on something or other here in the shop or making some repair to Striker he could always find her doing something. He wasn't much better really but he still thought she should be resting in stead of in the shop working.

Thinking to distract him she turned and grabbed the device she'd been making, "Besides this isn't even work." With a sheepish grin she held it up for him to see, "Look familiar?"

Herc laughed as he shook his head and straightened, "Well I'll be damned Jo."

There was a mini version of Striker Eureka standing in her hand. It wasn't all that detailed but Herc could see the resemblance to his Jager. She really did have a talent with metals and he had to say he was a little proud of her.

After looking the little replica over he turned his blue eyes back to the dark haired beauty, "You know this doesn't get you out of trouble though." He had to bit the inside of his cheek as she frowned a little in disappointment thinking she'd gotten off the hook with the distraction.

Jo wrinkled her nose at him as he leaned his hands on the bench to either side of her though now he was at least grinning at her instead of frowning. She sighed softly before glancing down at her shoulder, "Besides my shoulder is looking good the doc said. He just checked it this morning while you were in your debriefing."

"Jo… I still see stitches and I'm pretty sure he didn't clear you to stop using the sling," he said as his eyes went to her left shoulder. Where her skin was once slightly pale from being inside all the time it was angry red now around the gash that had been stitched back together. It might not be as painful now but he could tell it still caused her pain and there hadn't even been enough time to remove the stitches yet.

The brunette sighed heavily as she played with the replica in her hands purposely avoiding his eyes until he reached out to touch a hand to her chin, "Come on it's not all that bad. I just don't want to see you cause more damage than has already been done."

She nodded her head as she looked at him and noticed his eyes lift to the cut at her hairline that was still sporting stitches as well. That wasn't nearly as ugly as her shoulder was, at least the doctor had taken more care with those stitches which were much finer. Jo tipped her head back so he couldn't see the cut anymore. She didn't like to admit she was vain but at the moment she felt that way all the same.

Herc leaned forward and kissed her chin and smiled at her, "It really doesn't look that bad Jo." He laughed and let his hands drop to her hips as he looked into her eyes, "So what other trouble were you thinking about getting into?"

When she lowered her face again with a look that told him she was intent on dissuading him from thinking she would have done something she shouldn't be doing he decided to beat her to the punch. One hand rose to catch her gently behind the neck and pulled her forward so he could take advantage of her open mouth. Before she could stop him Herc swept his tongue into her mouth and was rewarded with a husky little groan from her.

He couldn't stop himself from grinning which broke the kiss and gave her a chance to catch her breath which she used to scold him, "That wasn't fair!"

Laughing he shook his head, "You're right it wasn't." And before she could say anything again he kissed her once more. This time his tongue was parried with hers and there was a small skirmish for dominance but in the end he won. Pressing close to Jo he tipped her head slightly and deepened the kiss as he felt her hands on his shoulders.

Jo should have seen his tactic coming but she'd been intent on defending herself. She was hardly complaining though. For the last two days since she'd been released from the infirmary he'd treated her like she would break apart if he touched her and it was maddening. Jo didn't like it one bit so she was more than happy to accept his kiss and let him win if it meant he was going to continue kissing her.

Since they had started this… relationship they had tried to go slowly but the physical attraction they had was damn near sending sparks all over the place any time they got close to each other. Jo felt like she was going to jump him one of these times injuries or not. While her shoulder hurt it wasn't terrible so long as she didn't lift her arm too much. Her head only hurt in the evening and a pain pill before bed seemed to be the key to that.

Her hands slid over his muscled shoulders, a trait she very much appreciated about him. He took good care of his body and she'd caught him working out a few times. Dear lord she'd been amazed she'd been able to walk away from that particular sight. Since then she'd avoided the gym at times when she knew he was there even if it was hard to keep away.

As her finger found the edge of his sleeve Jo let her fingers slip beneath to brush against his skin. She traced the lines of the tattoos she'd admired more than a few times. The one her fingers traced on his left shoulder was of a flaming heart wrapped in barbwire, a banner with the word 'freedom' beneath it. The eagle perched over it was beautiful and whenever she could Jo made him let her look at it. The fact that the tattoo was on such a well sculpted shoulder didn't hurt either of course.

One of the sexist physical things Jo thought a man could possess was muscle. She didn't like the body builder type of guy but like Herc who was well maintained and slightly ripped just because he took good care of himself over the years. She had to admit she appreciated Herc's dedication to his body and keeping healthy despite the hard times since the Kaiju had started attacking.

Her fingers massaged his shoulder and continued tracing the lines of his large tattoos Jo heard Herc groan as he kissed her. In return she made a soft sound of her own that had him pressing closer to her, his hand at her hip gripping tightly as if she might slip away from him. There could probably be a category three Kaiju breathing down her neck and she wouldn't have pulled away from him for her life.

Lifting her left arm in an attempt to wrap around him Jo was forced to draw back, a sharp inhale of breath giving away the pain that had just coursed through her briefly in protest to the movement of her arm. In her desire foggy mind she'd completely forgotten about the fact that her arm was still injured and that it hadn't been that long since she'd been in the infirmary.

"Damn it I forgot," Herc said in a decidedly more accented and huskier voice.

With a soft laugh Jo lifted a brow at him, "You forgot? I'm the one who moved a little too quickly. It's alright you're not ready for my moves just yet."

That brushed some of the worry from his face as he laughed, "Your moves eh? Should I be worried?"

She pretended to think about that question for a moment and then grinned, "You're not on any heart medication yet are you?"

The look she got said he was only mildly amused by her crack at his age and he shook his head at her, "Better watch it kid one of these days I'm going to make you pay up and then you're going to be in trouble."

Leaning closer again Herc kissed her lips but only briefly much to her displeasure. He tipped his head back as he ran his fingers through her dark hair, "Not a very patient woman are you?"

A snort escaped her as she shook her head, "Have you ever met a patient woman before?"

Herc thought about it which earned him a smack on the shoulder before he shook his head, "I certainly don't have one now."

Wrinkled her nose at him Jo pushed him back and slipped carefully down off the bench though he moved quickly as if he was going to help her until she held up a hand to stop him, "I'm alright Herc, just didn't think before. I'm not completely broken."

"I know that Jo but you can't blame me for trying to help," he said with a little pout that made her smile.

She picked up the sling from the bench and started pulling it on and adjusting it until it was in the right place so she could rest her left arm inside comfortably. Jo adjusted it once more and then smiled at him as she stepped up to him and kissed his stubborn chin, "And that's what I like about you, that bone deep trait that won't let chivalry go."

Herc tipped his head down and kissed her a little more properly before pulling away again to wrap his arm around her waist carefully, "So now that I've saved you from yourself what shall we do?"

He got a look that said she wasn't amused and laughed, "Oh come on Jo lighten up a little bit."


	7. Chapter 7

"What has been your problem lately," Herc questioned his moody son after ripping off his helmet. He was tired of getting either the cold shoulder from the boy or hostility. They had just been in the drift and Herc knew most of Chuck's issue was with the relationship with Jo but Herc didn't understand at all.

His son pulled off his own helmet and sighed as he turned away from Herc as if he was going to walk away. Reaching out Herc grabbed his shoulder, "Don't walk away from me mate, I want to know what's going on."

"You were just in my bloody head how do you not know what's going on!"

Chuck whipped around with a glare in his eyes that Herc had seen a time or two before as the man had grown up. Why Chuck had such a problem with the relationship between himself and Jo was beyond Herc. There was a small amount of attraction Chuck had towards Jo but it wasn't that. Whatever it was even the drift wasn't helping in this case.

Pushing the hand on his shoulder away Chuck sniffed a little and then looked at Herc, "Look if you want to stick it in some chick half your age have…"

He didn't get to finish what he was saying before Herc's fist collided with his jaw and knocked him back a step. Shocked Chuck looked at his dad as if he'd gone crazy, the older man had never struck him before.

"What the hell is wrong with you?" Chuck held his jaw where he'd been struck and shook his head at his father. He would never have expected that the old man would strike him, "She's a piece of tail."

Chuck jerked back when Herc took another step towards him, "Watch your mouth boy. I don't give a damn what you think of her but I happen to care about her, maybe even love her."

That surprised both men into standing there staring at each other blankly for a long moment before Chuck tossed his hands up in the air, "Fine. Whatever makes you happy… dad."

That hadn't been the way Herc had seen that going but he couldn't say he expected anything else either. Sighing heavily he shook his head and rubbed a hand over his face as he turned to head in the opposite direction as his son had gone.

He couldn't explain what was going on with Chuck or why he was so worked up about his relationship with Jo. Of course he'd seen that Chuck didn't like that Jo was young in comparison but it wasn't just that. There was something he couldn't place his finger on but hoped to understand at some point.

After spending the day on patrol in Striker Eureka Herc didn't have the energy to deal with his son's moods. He wanted a shower and to crawl into bed for a couple hours. With his helmet under his arm Herc rubbed his face with his free hand and sighed heavily as he went in to get help getting out of his suit, it was easier to have the techs take all the crap on him off than to struggle out of it on his own. Whatever was going on it was going to have to wait until tomorrow.

He was pleasantly surprised to find his room wasn't empty when he finally got there. With a smile he shut the door behind himself and looked at the brunette currently asleep in his bed. She'd stripped down to her underwear and tank top, her overalls and boots neatly set aside in a chair. The blankets on his bed barely covered her legs much less the rest of her so he was getting an eye full of the red panties she wore and the slightest hint of color around her nipples against the white fabric of her tank top.

With a shake of his head Herc grinned and was tempted to get into bed with her but knew he needed a shower more than anything at the moment. Before he could give in to the temptation to crawl into his more than inviting bed Herc turned and walked into the bathroom, shutting the door most of the way before he stripped out of his clothes and into the shower to turn some cool water on himself.

Another more than pleasant surprise happened when a pair of arms slipped around his torso and he felt warm skin press against his back. "That water is a little cold isn't it," she said as she shivered and he couldn't miss the press of hard nipples against his back.

Herc groaned as he dropped his head forward and placed his hands over the smaller ones resting on his chest, "Well see I came home to find this mostly undressed woman in my bed. Instead of ravishing her like I should have I decided to take a shower."

Rubbing herself against him Jo smirked, "Well that seems like a silly way to appreciate that poor woman." She let her hands slowly slip down his abs and across his hips but she teasingly didn't go lower.

Herc reached down to stop her wandering hands despite the smile on his face, "Mmm, careful there sweetheart you might wake a sleeping beast."

The laugh he heard made Herc all too aware she might have a goal targeting said sleeping beast which should worry him but at the moment all he could think about was forgetting a long day. Jo would certainly be able to help him forget he was sure.

Reaching out Herc turned the shower knob so hot water sprayed his chest and then his back as he turned to face Jo. He slipped his arms around her body and pulled her close as his eyes went to her shoulder that was now healed, "How does the shoulder feel?"

He got a look that said that wasn't exactly what she wanted to talk about but she answered him all the same, "Physical Therapy is going well, got most of the movement back just working on building up some more strength."

"That's good, I'm glad it's feeling better," he leaned his head down and kissed her lips as he turned them in the shower so that she was under the spray of water. Breaking the kiss he pulled gently on her hair to get her to tip her head back so the water splashed down to dampen her thick hair. She gave a little moan as the hot water trickled down over her and she shivered slightly, "Mmm, _that_ is better."

Watching as her mouth opened in a soft groan of appreciation for the warmth Herc knew he wasn't going to be able to hold back this time. This whole time he'd been trying to go slow but she was the one who'd crawled into his bed, gotten into his shower. Well he was only so much a gentleman.

He pressed himself against her as he gripped her hair at the base of her skull, "Woman you are in for it you know that."

And a cheeky little grin was his answer as she lifted her hands to brush water back from her face as she looked at him. Herc groaned and dropped his mouth to hers finding her welcoming as her hands moved along his arms, across his shoulders to his neck. He wanted Jo and obviously she was in the same frame of mind at the moment.

Feeling his erection pressed against her belly Jo couldn't deny the butterflies that started inside her. Liquid heat pooled between her thighs as she thought of all the things she wanted to do to him, all the things she wanted him to do to her.

She slipped her hands up his neck carefully massaging the muscles as she returned his hungry kiss. Jo rubbed her body against his enjoying the feel of his warm skin against hers, the brush of the slight hair on his chest against her nipples. Waiting this long had made her nearly frenzied but Herc was going achingly slow even in his kiss.

What was worse she was pretty sure he could tell how much she wanted to jump on him and was enjoying taking his sweet time. Jo scratched her nails over his skin and got a chuckle out of him after he broke the kiss to nip at her lower lip. Tipping her head back a little she opened to look at him, "Herc… don't play games."

"I would _never_," he said with a grin as he slipped his hands down her back to grip her hips gently and pull her close. He couldn't help but chuckle when she wrinkled her nose at him, "What, didn't like the tone?"

She playfully smacked him and shook her head, "Fine if you want to play that way I can just go back to my own room and finish the job myself."

Chuckling he held fast to her hips as she tried to turn away from him and shook his head, "Oh no. I have no intentions of taking care of myself tonight that's for damn sure. You started it now you're going to help finish it."

With one swift move Herc turned her and pressed her back against the cool metal wall of the shower, grinning as she gasped at the contact. He wasn't letting her go now that he had his hands on her bare skin, "don't pout sweetheart, I'll take care of you."

The look he got was near scalding but it merely made him laugh which turned into a groan when the little minx rubbed her body against him again, his hard member between them letting him know the time for drawn out play was over. He wanted her too badly to prolong the torture too much longer.

((Thank you everyone who's read along this far! So... now... do we go all the way or do we fade to black? :P ))


	8. Chapter 8

*** * * * Warning: Adult Content * * * ***

**(Still a little rough so I apologize for that)**

Jo looked into his blue eyes and knew tonight they were going to finally take that last step they'd been dancing around for too long. There was a hunger in his eyes that made her feel feminine all the way down to her toes, a slight catch in the middle where she was aching for him but still all of her felt that he wanted her. It was a heady thing to know he wanted her of all the women around.

He grinned at her a little and leaned in but didn't press his mouth to hers as she expected him to. The grin on his face broadened when she gave him a disappointed look, "Herc…"

"No games sweetheart but strokes my ego to see your reaction all the same," he said with a soft chuckle as he kissed not her lips but her cheek. Slowly his lips moved back towards her ear where he nipped her ear lobe and then down to her neck. The slight brush of the stubble on his face was rough but Jo found she liked it despite herself.

"There are better things to be stroking than your ego you know," she said a little huffy even as she tipped her head to the side to expose her neck to his exploring lips.

Laughing Herc pulled his mouth away from her skin and shook his head at her but agreed, "I suppose you're right. Things… like this," he asked as a thumb brushed over a hard nipple which got a gasp out of her.

He couldn't help but grin at the look she gave him. While she was enjoying what he was doing to her it was clear she would appreciate other things far more. It was torture for them both to draw it out any longer but he was still loath to let go of this playfulness.

Jo nodded her head, "Much better than your ego I'd say." She laughed softly as she looked up at him and brushed her hands over his shoulders, "Herc I need you."

One of his hands hooked her knee and pulled it up to slip over his hip so when he rubbed against her this time his length found warm wetness that had nothing to do with the shower. Groaning Herc finally sealed his mouth over hers and rocked his hips against her but didn't enter her.

It wasn't long before Jo was moving against him, frantic little sounds escaping her as she tried to tip her hips at just the right time to force him to enter her but he drew back each time. When she bit his lower lip Herc finally gave in to her demands.

The feeling of him entering her made Jo drop her head back to the shower wall with a loud moan. It had been a long time for them both and the intrusion stretched her but in ways that had her begging for more. The ache she'd felt before eased but was quickly replaced with another sort of ache that needed movement to be erased.

Slowly, slower than he thought himself capable of, Herc sank into his sweet Jo. He watched her face when she broke the kiss and squeezed her hip as he settled into her to the hilt. For a moment he didn't think he was capable of moving the sensation was almost too much. He felt like a teenager again and wanted to chalk it up to it being awhile since he'd been with a woman but had a feeling it was just Jo.

After a moment of enjoying the feel of her warmth around him Herc finally started moving. Her leg around his hip pulled him closer as he tried to draw back and thrust into her. They both moaned as his slow strokes drove them closer to the release they both needed badly. With his free hand Herc ran his fingers over her breast, tweaking the nipple gently as he watched her face and the reactions that rolled so openly across her expressions.

Jo finally opened her eyes and found him staring at her as he made love to her. The intensity in his eyes as he watched her surprised her but at the same time it made her hotter for him. Leaning into him she pulled him into a hungry kiss as she rocked her hips into his thrusts. She moaned into his mouth as he kneaded a breast with his big hand and continued his steady pace. So close to snapping Jo felt like his patience at the moment was more torture than anything else.

Sucking his tongue as she broke the kiss again Jo whispered near his ear, "Herc please… I'm so close." She pressed her hips out to punctuate her meaning. A nip at his ear lobe seemed to convey her urgency as he grunted and lowered both his hands to her behind.

Herc lifted Jo against him and smiled when she wrapped her legs around his waist which put him in the perfect spot. Turning his head he kissed her neck as he drove into her hard after one last slow thrust. The gasp that turned into a moan from her had him on edge. She was so responsive to his touch, his stroke. It was driving him crazy but he still had a shred of sanity left to realize this impromptu moment in the shower was also unprotected.

Whispering dirtily against her ear Herc grit his teeth as he pounded into Jo who was close he could tell but not quite there. If he didn't do something he was going to embarrass the hell out of himself and come first. "Come on Jo fly for me baby, come for me Jo."

She moaned as she gripped his shoulders, her nails threatening his skin though she didn't know it. Her attention was focused on the orgasm she knew was just out of her reach. Jo pressed against him, arching away from the wall as he drove into her, "Herc… fuck!" She didn't usually use that particular word but she couldn't help it.

Carefully he spread a hand low on her belly, his thumb finding her clit. He had to push her over the edge quick before he lost it completely. Mercilessly Herc rubbed his thumb against the bundle of nerves as he drove into the brunette. She jerked against him and he felt it the moment her orgasm took her.

Muscles tightened hard around his cock and Herc groaned even as Jo moaned his name loudly. Her body shook against his as she wrapper her legs around him more as if trying to hold him in place. Afraid he might push himself over the edge he let her pull him in deep as she came. He felt ever twitch of her body, every muscle that squeezed him and groaned again. Her nails scratched against his shoulders roughly but not unpleasantly he found, oddly he liked the sensation and it distracted him from what was going on where their bodies were joined.

As she started coming down from ecstasy Jo realized slowly the shoulders beneath her hands were tense, the muscles bunched into hard knots. Opening her eyes she looked at Herc and lifted a brow at him for a moment before it hit her, he hadn't come with her. For a moment she was confused, hadn't he enjoyed it too? He certainly had seemed like he was right there with her until that last little bit when she lost track of everything.

Then she realized belatedly that neither of them were protected during this encounter. While she was hardly worried about a disease there was one other thing that could be life changing for them both. Jesus she hadn't even given it a second thought she'd had so much pent up desire and need. Her mouth actually went dry with the thought of what could have happened as she looked at Herc and his tense expression. Finally she managed, "Let me down."

At first Herc shook his head but the little grin she flashed at him changed his mind. Slowly he pulled out of her, groaning as he did. This was the hardest thing he'd ever done he was pretty sure but he managed to let go of Jo all the same. He certainly didn't expect his little dark haired beauty to drop to her knees in front of him and place her hands on his hips to turn him so the spray of the water was blocked by his back.

The look in her eyes made Herc groan again as he looked down at her, his member standing proud right in front of her full lips. He wasn't sure he was going to be able to stand what Jo was about to do but he certainly wasn't about to stop her either.

Jo grinned up at Herc as she lifted a hand to gently, almost timidly, stroked his member. The sound that escaped him was a cross between a growl and a moan, a sound that was definitely encouraging. Running her tongue across her lower lip Jo continued to look up at him as she brushed her lips against the tip of his length.

One of his hands found it's way into her hair where he gripped her, "Joanna…" She grinned at him and before he could stop her took him into her mouth. Jo followed her mouth with her hand as she looked up wondering how long he was going to be able to last.

Herc knew it wouldn't take much more but he couldn't say that, he couldn't say anything at all as he watched her lips slide along his length. He'd never seen anything so amazing, nor felt anything so amazing as her mouth engulfing him. The sweet warmth and the feel of her tongue against the hardest part of him was more than Herc could handle for long.

Embarrassingly gripping her hair Herc groaned as he jerked and felt himself thicken as he began to come. He tipped his head back as Jo continued to move her mouth along him as he spilled himself into her mouth. Somewhere he heard Jo moan around him, somewhere he realized she didn't pull away until the very last drop was spilled but he was so caught up in the exquisite pleasure that wrapped around him from the tips of his toes to the top of his head as Jo brought him over the edge.

When he was finally able to put a thought together Herc looked down at her only to see her grinned at him. He laughed as he shook his head and held out a hand to help her up, "Well that was certainly unexpected." Wrapping his arms around her Herc kissed her lips and then turned so the warm water was spraying over Jo for a moment before he reached beneath her to shut the water off, "We're going to use up all the water sweetness."

(Comments: This still needs to be edited... probably badly. Pretty soon we'll start learning more about Jo's background I think. Hopefully I haven't lost anyone yet. There are one or two parts in this chapter that need some revisions so bear with me a little while I make the adjustments.)


	9. Chapter 9

Eyes popping open Jo woke with a start. Her grey eyes took a moment to adjust to the darkness but she realized right away she wasn't in her own room. The arm laying across her waist tightened, pulling her back against warm skin. She felt Herc drop a kiss on her shoulder as he stirred behind her and tried to calm her racing heart. If she managed more than a week without those sort of dreams she would have died a happy woman.

"Ok," rumbled a question heavily accented by sleep and that aussie twang she loved so much.

Jo forced a smile and rubbed the arm curled around her, "Yeah, sorry."

For a moment she thought he'd gone back to sleep but then he was stirring, squeezing her briefly before shifting so he could roll her on to her back, "What's wrong?"

Rubbing her eyes Jo shook her head, "It's nothing. Just an old dream."

Herc yawned and opened his eyes a little more fully to look at her, "Just a dream?" He wasn't sure he believed her. Being a light sleeper he'd felt her jerk awake and usually that sort of thing wasn't because of just any dream.

Jo wasn't sure she wanted to get into what her dream had been about right now. She was still a little shaky from it and really just wanted to forget about it. After so many years you'd think she'd be able to move on but apparently her brain was still hanging on to things.

Lifting her head she kissed his lips, "Yeah… just a dream, nothing to worry about. I'm sorry I woke you."

Quietly he looked at her for a moment and then shook his head before he leaned down to kiss her again. Lifting his head slightly he looked into her eyes, "You don't have to hide from me Jo."

She was silent as she looked back at him and he could see the shadows in her grey eyes, see the pain she was hiding and wished he knew how to reach that part of her. Herc wasn't used to seeing such a close reflection of his own feelings.

Unsure what to say to him Jo bit her lower lip before she shook her head, "I know. There's nothing to hide really. Crappy childhood is all that is. Everyone has their baggage, mine just crops up every now and again in my nightmares."

A brow rose as he looked at her, "that kind of baggage usually means there is a story to tell."

Jo shrugged as she lowered her eyes, unable to meet his, "A story I'm not sure I want to start telling right now." She brushed her fingers over the face tattooed on his shoulder and lifted her eyes back to him to find him watching her. Feeling a little uncomfortable she wrinkled her nose at him, "It's not a big deal Herc, abusive mom and a dad who wasn't around. There are other people around who've dealt with the same thing."

Herc was at a loss, what did you say to something like that? Obviously the abuse was extensive if she still had nightmares about it. Things had never been good between him and his son but he wasn't abusive… neglecting maybe but never abusive. He couldn't imagine what it must have been like for her.

Sitting up Jo pulled away from him, "I just don't talk about it a whole lot. It's just annoying that I still lose sleep over the crap that woman put me through." She swung her legs out of the bed and leaned down to pick up her tank top from the floor where she had dropped it before getting into the shower with him.

"Every couple of weeks I have some nightmare about any number of things my mother did while I was growing up. It would have been better had she given me up at birth but for whatever reason she decided she needed someone else to torture I guess," she said as she pulled the tank top over her head.

Herc was silent, letting her talk but his eyes were on her back. He hadn't noticed the marks on her back before but couldn't take his eyes off them now. There were four spots scattered out on the left side of her back that looked suspiciously like cigarette burns. Had her mother done that to her?

When her shirt dropped into place Herc lifted his eyes to look at the side of Jo's face. She sat on the edge of the bed looking at him over her shoulder, "I just don't want you to look at me with that look, that 'you poor thing' look that makes me feel like no matter what I do I'll never get away from her."

Sitting up with her Herc moved behind her so he could rest his chin on her shoulder while he wrapped his arms around her torso, "I would never look at you like that Joanna. Disbelief and awe but never pity Jo."

She snorted as she leaned her head back so she could see him, "Awe? Trust me it's nothing to be in awe of."

With a shake of his head he smiled at her, "I'm in awe of you surviving it but still being the great person that you are."

He got an eye roll as she shook her head back at him, "Did you hit your head in the shower or something? Herc… I'm n-"

"Don't argue with me. I think you are a great person despite anything you might say so just let it be Jo," he said after cutting her off. He gave her a look that said he wouldn't hear anything else on the subject.

A huff escaped her as she shook her head at him, "Alright whatever."

Pulling her with him as he lay back down Herc smiled at her, "Good girl." He maneuvered her so she was laying down and he could slip his thigh between hers, "Now let's go back to sleep… unless you can think of another way to spend a day off?"

Jo punched his shoulder at the good girl comment but let him pull her back down into the bed with him. She had never said as much as she just had to anyone. At the moment she wasn't sure how to feel about that but she'd put it out there now and there was nothing she could do about it.

Looking up at him she finally smiled at him as she ran her hands along his shoulders, "I suppose there are a couple things I can think of." She wrapped her arms around him before lifting her head to kiss him briefly, "Sleep might do you some good though, still looking a little rough from last night."

A growl issued from Herc a moment before he started tickling her. Much to his surprise his young lover was very ticklish and squeaked as she tried to get away from him. Her laugh was infectious and before long they were both laughing until he finally let Jo pin his hands as she straddled him. Pinned he grinned at her, "I didn't know you could make a sound like that."

Jo rolled her eyes and let go of his wrists to slap at his bare chest playfully, "I don't get tickled all that often… _I_ didn't know I could make that sound." She wrinkled her nose at him before leaning down to kiss his lips before he could say anything else. He'd effectively distracted her that was for sure and she had a feeling that was his goal after all. Now she felt like she wanted to repay him for that small reprieve from her past.


	10. Chapter 10

If she'd worried that Herc would ask more questions about her past she shouldn't have because she hardly saw him over the next few days. With a Kaiju attack and meetings about funding Herc was nowhere to be found until it was well past lights out. He was exhausted when he finally reached his bed and while he might have felt poorly about not being able to see her much Jo understood.

Instead of sitting around waiting for him she busied herself with different projects. She finally had the complete clear from the doctor so she was finally back to a full workload. With the attack she had enough to do for a little while, Striker took a beating but like always came out the victor.

She'd worried about Herc and even Chuck when she'd heard the alarm go off. It was natural to worry, she always had before but now it was different. Jo would never ask Herc to give up what he was doing, he was saving the world after all, so she found plenty for herself to do until she knew the outcome of the battle waging off the shores of Hong Kong.

After the category three attack Jo was able to get a brief moment with Herc before he was pulled away by Stacker. It was long enough for her to be reassured he was in one piece. He kissed her hard and told her he would come find her when he could get away. Obviously he was busy because she hadn't seen more than a mere passing of him since then. Jo wasn't the clingy sort so she buried herself in work at least knowing that Herc was here at the shatterdome instead of out in Striker.

What she didn't expect was to have a run in with a different man, one she would have rather never seen again so long as she lived. She was shocked to find herself encountering the man built like a linebacker but prayed she managed to keep most of her surprise from her face. Obviously not all of it because the man grinned at her, "I see I managed to surprise you. It's been a long time Joanna."

"Ten years, it's been ten years Peter," she said quietly. She stood a little straighter as she tried to move around him but he blocked her path so she couldn't get around him. The muscle in her jaw ticked as she looked at him, irritated that he was here much less that he was blocking her way.

He continued to grin at her, "Ten years is a very long time. You've grown up mighty pretty haven't you?"

The way he spoke made her skin crawl almost as much as did the way his eyes travelled over her body with obvious male appreciation. Jo felt like throwing up as she stepped back from him when he reached out to touch her. She wasn't sure she could stand it if he touched her. And that southern lit of his grated on her senses, reminded her of growing up in a southern city she would never step foot in again so long as she lived.

His grin only widened when she stepped back, "Aw you weren't always afraid of me. Sweet little Joanna."

With a shake of her head Jo took another step back, "What are you doing here Peter? How did you even get into the shatterdome? How did you find me?"

"I came to get a little bit of information from you Joanna. Turns out you have been holding out on me all these years," anger laced his words as some of his act dropped.

Of course Jo knew exactly what he was talking about but the information he was looking for wasn't something she would ever give him. She shook her head, "I don't know what you're talking about. I think you should go."

For as big and stocky as he was it was surprising how quickly he could move. Before she could move away from him Peter reached out and grabbed her upper arm. Anger changed his handsome face into something far darker than she'd ever seen before, "You know damn well what I want. Now tell me or I swear to god the last time we were together is going to seem like paradise compared to what I will do to you now."

Paling she tried in vain to pull away from him even as he pulled her closer and moved with her towards the nearest wall. Jo tried harder to wrench her arm free, feeling his fingers dig into her bicep as he jerked her arm behind her and turned her before slamming her into the wall hard. Her head smacked the metal hard enough she felt warmth from the newly healed wound slip down her temple.

"Now listen up Joanna. I want to know where he is and you are going to tell me," he growled near her ear ignoring her sound of pain.

"Hey! What the hell is going on," came a voice from down the hall from them.

Instantly the pressure on her arm disappeared as Peter jumped away from her as if he'd been burned. Turning he didn't actually run but he could sure move fast when he wanted to.

Jo lifted a hand to her head as she slid down the wall to her knees. She groaned a little when her fingers came away with blood, "Damn."

"You alright Jo?"

Surprised to hear her name she lifted her eyes to see who was speaking and found herself looking into familiar eyes. She wasn't sure if she was relieved or upset that it was Chuck she was looking at instead of Herc but she managed a response. "Yeah… I will be."

He looked back at her and then sighed as he bent to hook a hand beneath one of her arms, "Come on then, get up and I'll help you to the infirmary."

Getting to her feet made her a little dizzy, caused her to sway a enough Chuck steadied her, "Careful. Rang your bell pretty good. Do I dare ask who that was?"

After standing still for a moment she sighed softly and started moving down the hall with him, "Seems like." She thought about his question for a moment not really wanting to talk about what had just happened but knew she wasn't going to get away without giving some answers.

"He's… a ghost… or at least I never thought I would end up seeing him again, least of all here," she finally said as he helped her.

Chuck was quiet as he walked beside her for a long moment unsure what to say to her. Turning a corner he ran his fingers through his hair, "A ghost who has it out for you. Is he going to be a problem?"

"More than likely," she placed a hand on his arm to stop him. "Chuck… please don't say anything to Herc. I'll explain to him. I don't want to drag anyone else into whatever trouble Peter is cooking up."

He stood beside her, looking into her eyes and then shook his head, "Hey whatever is between you two isn't my problem." Chuck turned to walk away from her, the infirmary was not more than a handful of steps from them so his good deed for the day was complete, but stopped, "He may be able to help with whatever this is but you do what you want."

As he turned away again Jo stood quietly considering that, "Thank you."

With a wave of a hand he continued on down the hall away from her without looking back. Jo was surprised he'd helped her this far but then again he was Herc's son. While he didn't seem to like her for reasons she didn't know he wasn't completely heartless after all.

((Oh my goodness... two chapters not months apart! Sorry it's been taking so long to post updates all. I am amazed by the people following this and love all the feedback! Thank you all so much! So we'll be getting into Joanna's history a little, figured we needed some background for her and Herc is going to have his hands full with this one. I can get a little brutal with my characters, I love torturing them and Joanna has a hell of a back story that's about to come to light. Hang in there readers I'm working hard since I've got the writing bug. Hoping to have more for you soon. :) Again thank you all SO much.))


	11. Chapter 11

"What do you mean you are not going to let me back there," Herc growled as he looked at the short young man glaring over the top of his thick rimmed glasses back at him. "Private I am about five seconds away from making sure you never see daylight again if you don't let me passed."

Pale the man looked at him, reached up and adjusted his glasses and swallowed the knot in his throat. He shook his head a little hesitantly, "Sir I'm sorry but I have my orders and the regulations state only family of the infirmed are allowed. Given the situation it would also be remiss of me to allow someone by when it was a stranger in the compound that caused the problem."

The muscle in Herc's cheek ticked as he clenched his teeth, "The situation? I'm hardly a stranger in this shatter dome and of all people I am no threat to her."

Shaking his head the Private remained at his post, "Sir I'm not at liberty to discuss the situation. You can take a seat and wait for the patient you are looking for to come out when she's been cleared. Reports have already been filed and I have orders to keep it under wraps sir."

"If you don't get out of my way you are going to be laying in one of these beds yourself," he said as he advanced on the younger man, his voice low and even which was more a sign of his closeness to exploding than anything else.

"Leave him alone Herc, he's doing his job," came a female voice that instantly eased the temper that had been about to get out of hand.

Looking passed the young Private Herc spotted Jo, new bandages on her head. The moment of relief he'd felt was replaced by worry all over again, "What in the hell happened to you?"

She took his arm and pulled him away giving the soldier at the desk an apologetic smile as she passed him. "How did you even know I was here?"

Herc stopped her as she tried to continue walking and turned her to face him, "A friend of mine is a medic and in passing he said something along the lines that you were a tough little cookie or something like that. Now tell me what the hell happened."

With a soft sigh Jo brushed her fingers through her hair that she'd let down in hopes of covering some of the mess that her head was now. She looked at Herc and wished she had had a little time to figure out exactly what she was going to tell him.

"It's a long story really but the short of it is someone showed up and started demanding answers for stuff that happened ten years ago," she said as she avoided looking at him. Putting a hand on his arm she tried to pull him into moving, "Come on, I promise I'll explain but not here."

Watching her eyes dart up and down the corridor Herc wanted to wrap his arms around her but knew right now she wouldn't appreciate the show of comfort. He shook his head but started walking again without arguing further. Someone from her past showed up and started causing trouble, he wanted to know exactly who the man was and where to find him.

When they reached her room Jo was quick to unlock the door only to lock it again once they were inside. Moving to stand near a wall Herc leaned back, arms crossed, tense and unsure what to say or do as he watched the brunette move about the small space. She was pacing back and forth from one side of the room to the other after collecting a clean tank top from the set of drawers set into one wall.

With a heavy sigh Jo tossed the clean shirt on the bed and turned to look at Herc who was quietly watching with those deep blue eyes. She didn't even know where to start to explain all this. There was so much and she was terrified to say any of it to the one person who seemed to accept her as she was. What if he found out her deepest, darkest secret and couldn't stand the sight of her?

The turning in her gut made Jo sit on the edge of her bed for a moment, "Herc… this is such a mess. I never expected to see this guy again let alone here thousands of miles from where I last saw him." She got to her feet again too restless to stay still for long, "How he found me is beyond me. I didn't even think my mother knew where I was. The fact that she told him of all people… well it shouldn't surprise me I guess that's the way she is."

Pushing away from the wall Herc reached out only to have Jo flinch away from him when she turned and was obviously surprised to find him so close. It hurt to see the reaction, the recoil but he tried to remind himself she'd just been assaulted and that it probably brought back some memories for her from the little he'd been able to gather.

He held up his hands, "Joanna… you know I would never hurt you."

"I know… I'm sorry Herc. It's not you it's just… all this… it makes me feel like a helpless kid again," she said with a heavy sigh.

One red brow rose slowly, "A helpless kid… Jo… talk to me please."

She paced unsure what she wanted to say to him. How could she tell him? How could she just lay it all out there? Jo chewed her lower lip as she thought hard on where she wanted to start or if she even wanted to start this conversation.

With the pounding in her head Jo couldn't think straight at the moment and wished more than anything she could just crawl into bed to sleep all this away. How was she supposed to handle this? This was exactly why she didn't get into serious relationships. She could cut and run without feeling guilty about it but Herc was different, she couldn't do that to him.

Rubbing at the unbruised side of her head she closed her eyes as she stopped moving, "Herc… it's not an easy thing to explain. I don't… I don't even know where to start."

As he watched her Herc felt his chest tighten, he had a feeling whatever she had to say wasn't going to be pleasant. Whatever it was, was dark and would likely tear him apart but he would hear it if she would say it. Herc would listen to whatever she had to say, if she could live with whatever it was he could hear it.

Stepping up to her Herc finally wrapped his arms around her and despite her jumping he pulled her close, "it's ok. Whatever you say… I'm not going anywhere, I'm won't love you any less."

Instead of putting her at ease as he'd thought it might Herc felt her shutter and then she was sobbing into his shoulder. She wrapped her arms around him and held on tightly as she cried. A moment later her knees gave out and Herc sank slowly to the floor with her, holding her as gently as he could without letting go.

The passage of time lost meaning for a little while. Herc had no idea how long they sat on the floor, rocking back and forth. Jo cried long and hard, silently for the most part but she cried all the same. For the first time since he'd known her Herc saw real emotions, felt the dampness as her tears soaked into his shirt, and he did love her still.

After a time she settled and the tears stopped. With a sniffle Jo leaned her head back to look at him, "I'm sorry… you don't need this mess."

Smiling Herc brushed hair back from her eyes, "Joanna… did you hear me before? I love you. Whatever this mess is I'm here for you."

Tears pooled in her eyes but she didn't shed them as she looked into blue depths. Sitting up a little she kissed him briefly, "I love you too Hercules. I don't want to but I do anyways."

That caused him to laugh as he looked back at her. Shaking his head Herc kissed her again, "Good. Now will you tell me what's going on. Tell me what I can do."

Joanna looked into his eyes for a long moment still unsure she wanted to tell him what he wanted to know. How could he love her after finding out her darkest secret? Well… there was only one way to find out and it was too late to hold back.

"That man, Peter Fletcher is his name, raped me when I was sixteen years old," she said almost too softly to be heard but Herc heard her as if she had shouted the words. "Nine months later… I had a baby boy… and now he wants to know where his son is."


	12. Chapter 12

It felt like a ton of bricks had been dropped on his chest the moment her words sank in. At first Herc wasn't sure he had heard her correctly but as he looked into her eyes he knew she was dead serious. What could he say in response to that?

Jo watched the emotions play across his face and finally sat up. It didn't surprise her that he let her go or that he looked beyond stunned. Of course she'd never said those words to anyone before but she still wasn't surprised. Running her fingers through her hair she lowered her eyes wanting to give Herc a moment to process.

Shaking his head Herc looked at Jo for a long moment. "Joanna…," he leaned forward to hug her hard before leaning back again. He ran a hand over his face, "Tell me what happened."

With a heavy sigh Jo shook her head, "It seems like so long ago and yet seeing him today… brought it all back." Wrapping her arms around herself she sat quietly for a moment before going on again, "He was my mom's boyfriend at the time. I was sixteen and things were… tough but that was just the way it was, hell it was the only way life had ever been at that point."

Getting up for the floor Jo moved to the bed and turned her back to him as she pulled her ruined shirt off over her head as carefully as she could. Only after replacing the blood stains for the clean tank top she'd gotten out did she turn back to him, "He wasn't all that bad at first. He was charming and I knew it would annoy the hell out of my mother if he paid me any attention whatsoever."

"My first mistake was thinking it was just harmless flirting," she said softly as she crossed her arms and leaned back so she was half sitting on the bed. "My mother and I have never gotten along and she had accused me of turning a boyfriend's head before. This time I thought I would at least be guilty of what she was throwing at me. At sixteen I had no idea what I was doing but when he started to pay attention I thought it was great."

Jo kicked a booted foot as she looked at Herc as he rose from the floor finally and moved to sit on the edge of the bed with her. He got close enough to brush his knee against her leg but otherwise he didn't touch her.

She sighed and brushed her fingers through her hair, "One night… mom was working late which wasn't out of the norm. I got home from school and he was there already, said he was waiting for my mom and thought he would just hang out until she got in."

With a snort she shook her head, "Things were fine at first but it didn't take long before we were getting more than just a little friendly. Started out just touching, he was rubbing my leg or my arm and then it was suddenly more than that."

Swallowing Jo hugged herself a little more as she looked at the floor, "One minute we were on the couch and then suddenly he was on top of me. I started struggling and we ended up on the floor. I wasn't as strong as I thought I was at that age and I swear he grew an extra couple hands or something."

"When I really started to fight in earnest he got more violent, punched me in the face a few times and completely dazed me. Next thing I knew he was tearing at my clothes and I kept trying to stop him but he kept hitting me whenever I got too… difficult," she said with a slight shiver as she relived the moment in her head.

Herc watched her when she went quiet and could see the pain in her face. He wanted very badly to stop her from saying anything more but the story wasn't over. There had been a child and as he didn't see a ten year old running around he could only imagine what had happened.

Looking at Herc she sighed heavily, "I have no idea how long it went on but I was a bloody mess when he was finished. His parting words were something along the lines of if I told anyone he would hurt me again."

"After he left I lay on the floor for a long time… I hurt so badly all over… I didn't know what to do. I was still on the floor, curled up with a blanket when my mother got home. She started screeching about the mess I was making on the floor and started demanding to know what had happened."

Jo stopped and ran a hand over her face, her expression had changed from the horror and pain of what had been done to her to something closer to disgust. There was obviously no love lost between her and her mother but whatever the relationship was it was a tough one to say the least of it.

Taking a deep breath she sighed and glanced away from Herc then, "I told her what had happened and instead of trying to help me she started screaming about how I had done this to myself. Told me I was a whore, told me it was my own fault, and left me laying there."

"Jesus Jo… you said your mom was bad news but… how could she-" he started but couldn't finish. Shaking his head Herc finally moved closer to her so he could wrap an arm around her waist as she shrugged her shoulders. He could see the tears in her eyes, could see the pain and torment of having gone through something like that.

With a swipe of her hand Jo brush away the tear that slipped down her cheek, "I managed to clean myself up for the most part. My mother wouldn't take me to the hospital, it would raise too many questions of course and she kept going on about losing her job if there was trouble of any kind."

Brushing at her face again Jo looked back at him and shook her head, "I have to say I thought that was the lowest moment of my life." The laugh that escaped her was more pained than humorous, "A couple months later I experienced the _lowest_ moment of my life when I realized I was pregnant. I had no idea that was why I was so sick. My mom wasn't the educating type as you can imagine so I never got the sex talk, never knew what signs of pregnancy were. Hell before that night I had only fooled around with boys, never done anything more so how was I supposed to know?"

There were more tears now, her eyes shimmered with them as she looked away from Herc again, "I took myself into the doctor finally, I was losing weight and sick all the time. I was four months along already by the time I knew what was going on and it was too expensive to even consider an abortion."

Jo wiped at her face and sniffled as she closed her eyes, "What was I going to do with a baby? I was 16 and terrified every day I would come home only to find him sitting there waiting for me. I was scared out of my mind and then I found out I was pregnant on top of that? I couldn't protect myself, how was I going to protect a tiny baby."

Tightening his arm around her Herc leaned forward to kiss the side of her face, "I can't imagine. Jesus Jo… I'm sorry."

She sniffled but leaned into him as she hugged her belly as if she were round with the baby again. Jo could swear at times she could still feel the little kicks and movements of that little boy as she carried him. There wasn't a day that went by that she forgot what had happened, forgot the pain of that time in her life.

Ten years and she'd never once shared that terrible time with anyone, Jo had never even considered telling anyone else about it. Yet here she sat with Herc telling him everything. Part of her felt relief now that the words were pouring out of her.

"I wasn't very popular at school, I was more awkward than anything but being pregnant? It opened up a whole other can of worms. I thought kids were mean before that but man I was wrong," she said softly as she sat up again.

"School was never the same after that, I was the girl who got pregnant after all. Boys were jerks and the girls pointed their fingers at me. At the time I was too caught up in what was going on to take much notice of it but after I had the baby… it didn't get any better."

When she stopped again Herc watched her quietly as emotions played across her face. Life sounded like it had been bad enough for her before this but he couldn't imagine how it had been after. Her mother should have been there for her, should have done something anything!

"Where was your dad during all this," he finally asked.

Pulled from her thoughts she turned to look at him and gave him a sad smile, "The same thing hit me as all this was happening and I had to drag it out of my mother but I got her to tell me where to find him. I had no idea what I was going to do and not a whole lot of time to figure it out but I knew if I kept the baby I wouldn't be able to stay with my mother so I went looking for him."

"Turned out he wasn't that far away and I found him pretty easily. I begged him to take me, to let me live with him or to help me get out of my mother's house. He looked at my big belly and told me I was just like her, told me I was trouble and he wanted nothing to do with me," she said, heat lacing her words. "At the time I had been crushed but now… now I'd like to find the bastard again and tell him where to stick his opinion of me."

"Turns out dear mother had gotten pregnant after she had me while she was with my old man. She told him it had been rape, some guy took her while she was drunk or something I guess. My dad took one look at me and saw her all over again," she explained.

Jo shook her head with a heavy sigh and glanced at Herc briefly before she went on, "I was a skinny thing then and all belly. I took care of myself but it was still hard, all of it… I didn't put on much weight, half the reason I think the poor kid came a little early but was still eight pounds."

There was a sad smile on her face as she reflected for a moment, "He was beautiful. A full head of hair that was so soft and fluffy. I have never seen such a chubby little newborn." Jo smiled as she remembered seeing her son for the first time, well after they cleaned him up. She'd instantly fallen in love with the little boy.

"I don't know if I was more relieved or hurt that I didn't have any visitors, not even my mom. The hospital tried to get a hold of her of course, I was a minor. Even then I knew I couldn't keep him but it was the hardest thing ever to let that little boy go," she said as she brushed more tears away with the back of her hand. Jo had never expected to love someone as much as she had that baby even with the circumstances.

Herc kissed her cheek and hugged her tightly for a moment, "What happened to him?"

Clearing her throat Jo went on, "A social worker came to talk to me the second day. She wanted to know what I was thinking, wanted to know if I had any stuff to even take care of a baby with and of course I didn't. The lady was amazing though, she didn't judge me she just tried to help. In the end she helped me decide to give the baby up for adoption. He would never have been safe had I kept him."

"My mom had been abusive before then but after she found out I was pregnant she got worse. I don't know why or what her thought process was but she was terrible, slapped me for no reason or pushed me out of her way all the time. I was afraid she'd hurt the baby if he went home with me and I was quickly approaching discharge so I had to decide."

A tear slipped down her face as she stared at nothing, "I knew it was for the best but it was the hardest thing I've ever had to do. Letting go of that little boy tore me apart but I knew he would at least go to someone who could give him a good life. I couldn't do that for myself let alone a tiny baby who needed someone to protect them."

Hugging her once more Herc shook his head. His own son hadn't exactly been planned but he remembered seeing him for the first time. It was an instant love that only a new parent knew. Having that moment trampled on by having to give up that love would definitely tear a person apart to say the least. Herc couldn't imagine how hard that must have been for her but his heart broke for her all the same.

"Do you know what happened to him after that?"

With a nod of her head Jo sighed, "I wasn't supposed to but the social worker lady felt bad for me and told me about the family who adopted him. They named him Dillon. They are great people. I promised I wouldn't bother the family and I never did but… I couldn't stop myself from going to see what sort of people they were."

"They made it painfully obvious what I would never have been able to give him. Dillon deserved parents like them and I was happy. After that I checked in now and again to make sure he was doing good. He grew up quick and strong. He lost most of the baby fat and was starting to thin out the last time I saw him, he looks more like me I think than his dad," she said softly.

Giving her a smile Herc nodded, "I bet he does. Dark hair, light eyes like you? He's handsome I bet."

Jo laughed softly and nodded her head, "He definitely is. Going to be a handful too but they are good to him and you can tell they love him. It's been almost two years since I've seen him."

"It doesn't matter what Peter threatens I would never tell him where Dillon is. He only wants to use the boy," she said wiping the last of her tears away as she looked at Herc with a determination he didn't doubt for a moment. He had a feeling she would take her son's location to the grave with her and he wasn't about to let it go that far.

"Well to start we can keep him from stepping foot in the shatterdome again. Jo I'm with you, I'm here for you," he said as he squeezed her gently.

Looking tired suddenly Jo nodded her head, "I know you are Herc and it means a lot to me. I can't hide in the shatterdome all the time but it's a start until I figure out what to do next." She leaned into Herc as she closed her eyes feeling exhausted physically and emotionally after the day she'd had.

Herc hugged her tightly and then cupped her face in his hand, "Let me help, don't shut me out… that's all I ask. I understand some things are things you have to do yourself but I can still help. I don't want to see you hurt again Jo, please don't try to take care of all of this on your own."

He got a smile and a small nod before she kissed his lips, "Ok."


	13. Note To Readers

I'm back and attempting to continue the story where it left off. Apologies to everyone for disappearing, life kind of took some turns I wasn't expecting and I've been far less creative than I hoped to be. Anyways I just wanted to update everyone and promise chapter thirteen… more than that hopefully are coming in the near future. I've got a good start on the next chapter and feel a little renewed with this story so let's see where I can take it. I want to thank everyone for reading and the feedback, I appreciate it a lot more than you know!


	14. Chapter 13

After sharing the shadow that had been cast over her with Herc Jo felt somehow lighter. He didn't look at her with that 'oh you poor thing' expression she had been worried about. Herc was a little more attentive with her but for the most part not much had changed between them, well… whatever they had seemed to have deepened some how. Jo couldn't explain it but letting him in to see the darkest part of her soul had let him in other places as well, places that had never been reached before.

Unsure what to do with that Jo was a little withdrawn when Herc wasn't around. She busied herself with work, as much of it as she could find, in hopes of not having to think about it too much. She felt over exposed at times and wasn't at all sure how to handle that feeling but she tried not to push Herc away like she had others.

It didn't help that Herc had requested she remain within the shatterdome when she wasn't with him. He had wanted her to always be with someone, a guard of some kind, but she'd vetoed that idea right away. Suddenly Herc found a lot of time to be around her and it chafed a little but she kept the frustration to herself for the most part.

After a life of hardly anyone caring about her well being it was suddenly hard to believe and to swallow the opposite. She did love Herc, probably the only reason she allowed him the liberties she did to begin with. Jo knew he was trying to look out for her and she was trying to accept that but it wasn't easy, he was a little smothering in his attempt to keep her safe.

"Joanna why are you in here alone, I said I would meet you in the mess hall," came his voice from the other side of her shop.

Sighing softly she turned to look at him, parts in her hands, "I didn't feel like eating Herc. I've just been working."

He moved to her side and looked at what she was doing before his expression softened. Herc wasn't completely blind, he was aware Jo didn't like all his concern focused on her suddenly. What she'd told him had upset him to say the least but more than anything it made him want to show her not everyone in the world was like the people she'd been exposed to in her life so far.

Herc crossed his arms as he watched her turn back to the workbench and continue the repairs she was trying to accomplish, "I was just worried when I didn't see you in the mess hall. When is the last time you ate anything?"

The shrug she gave him wasn't what he'd hoped for. Clenching his teeth Herc watched her quietly trying to decide how best to go about this with her. Jo wasn't used to someone being in her life and before now he wouldn't have really thought twice about her missing a meal. It was concerning but she hardly looked like she was wasting away at any rate and Jo was fairly good at taking care of herself.

Herc didn't like it but he knew if he pushed too hard, too quickly she would flee him. She was used to taking care of herself and that was the only way she'd known how to be. He had to be careful though it frustrated him to no end that she couldn't just let him hunt this guy down and accidently drop a kaiju on him or something.

"How'd the funding meeting go," she asked, attempting to change the subject.

For now Herc let the subject shift away from her, "The same as last time. The suits don't want to fund us anymore but Stacker is trying to get their support. He's working hard but I'm not sure it's going to matter in the end."

Jo glanced at him then and frowned, "Can't they see we're still needed here?"

Now it was his turn to frown, "All they see are the dollar signs. We're not bringing in money anymore like before. All that propaganda was profitable but people aren't buy into it anymore."

Which meant the people who called the shots weren't getting a return on their investment any longer. Jo heard the rumors flying around about the shatterdome being shut down, everyone was talking about it. It did mean everyone's jobs if the big guys upstairs decided to pull the plug here. This wasn't the first time rumors had flown around but it was the first time there was merit behind them for a change.

Glancing at him briefly Jo sighed and shook her head, "Not a whole lot we can do about it but hope they wise up." She snorted as she glanced back at what she was doing, "If you didn't do this what would you do Herc?"

The question surprised him and for a moment he merely looked at her blankly. What would he do instead of killing kaiju? Well… he hadn't thought about it in a long time. "Honestly… I don't know. I figured I'd be at this until one of those bastards got the better of us."

Jo wrinkled her nose at him as she turned her attention back to him, "Don't say that! Jez man, that's a great outlook on life."

"Oh and you have a better outlook yourself do you?"

Well he had her there, Jo didn't have a very good outlook in general but she didn't think she'd go out fighting a monster of all things. Then why was she here? Because it had seemed like a good idea at the time when she heard they were looking for mechanics. Ha, that was a lie even she didn't buy. It was dangerous and exciting that's why.

"We're not talking about me at the moment, I asked you what you would be doing old man," she said with a grin that was guaranteed to win her a little saving grace for the crack she'd just made about his age.

Herc shot a glare at her and shook his head, "I don't know, I've been a military man most of my life. I'm a Ranger after all, sure I would just be in some other fight if it wasn't this one."

That earned him a frown from his dark haired partner, "Really? Fighting? You want to fight?"

Shaking his head Herc moved to stand at the bench with her, "No, I don't actually but someone has to do it. Someone has to be there to defend the innocent when the wolf comes calling. I joined the military hoping to prove myself, hoping to make a difference."

"And have you," she asked as she stopped what she was doing to turn to face him with those strangely colored grey eyes of hers.

After a moment of thought Herc shrugged his broad shoulders, "Hell if I know sweetheart. I just keep trying. I think I've made… an impact in some places and not so much in others. I wasn't around a whole lot while Chuck was going up, off training or fighting some battle that in the end probably didn't make a whole lot of difference to anyone least of all a growing boy."

Jo tipped her head as she looked at him, "You know for a tough ol' soldier you have a few soft spots you know."

Laughing he wrapped his arms around her, "Guess I'm losing my edge in my old age. I used to be tough as nails."

"Oh I know one nail is still pretty tough if you ask me," she said with a glint of mischief in her eyes.

From the door Chuck made a gagging sound, "Did you really just say that? And you said my pick up lines were cheesy dad."

Jo blushed a deep red as she slipped out of Herc's arms and moved away from him all the while Herc couldn't help but laugh.

Glancing at his son Herc cocked a brow at him, "What do you need Chuck?"

"I'm not sure I can remember after that assault on my ears and the following assault on my imagination, jesus I never thought I'd hear someone hit on my dad."

Rolling his eyes Herc moved away from the workbench towards the other man, "What is it boy? You can bitch later, let's have it."

Chuck glanced from his dad to Jo, who was purposely keeping her back to the men now and was still sporting a deep blush, and then back again. "Stacker sent me to find you. I think it has something to do with the guy who...visited Jo here," he finally said.

That got her attention and caused her to turn around, "What? Stacker knows about that?"

Chuck lifted a brow at his old man and then shrugged, "Sounds like you have some explaining to do. Look don't shoot the messenger and all that, I'm just telling you our fearless leader is looking for you."

With a wave of his hand dismissing the younger man Herc turned to look back at Jo, "I went to Stacker to see who had been in and out of the shatterdome that day, who wasn't familiar. I also asked him about possibly having Mako show you a few moves...so you could… defend yourself."


	15. Chapter 14

Air...she needed air. Looking up from the mat she'd been knocked onto Jo tried to catch her breath all the while cursing Herc for suggesting this. Only when she was sure her lungs were going to continue working did she climb stiffly back to her feet, "You know this works better if I can actually breath."

"You are not very good Ms. Killian, need more practice," Mako said as she stood barefoot a few feet away.

Clenching her jaw Jo glared at the woman for a moment wondering what it might be like if she were sinking into quicksand or maybe if a kaiju were swallowing her whole, "Thanks for that observation Ms. Mori."

After stretching Jo gave a heavy sigh, "You know… I'm not sure this style is working for me." Jo appreciated the effort but wasn't sure Mako was the right person to teach her how to defend herself.

The asian woman tipped her head in thought and then shook her head, "Ms. Killian it will work if you commit yourself to it, if you focus."

"Unfortunately Ms. Killian might not have the kind of discipline you have Mako," came a voice from the edge of the ring.

With a growl Jo turned to glare at Chuck who was leaning against the wall just inside the door, "Excuse me?"

He smirked and pushed away from the wall to approach them, "You're a scrapper not an elegant fighter like Mako. Trying to get you to fall into that sort of fighting is going to end up hurting you more than helping you."

Jo watched him step onto the platform they were sparring on and wondered if everyone was out to get her today. She hated to admit it but she wasn't a graceful person. Mako made this look easy and fluid where Jo… Jo made the moves look clumsy and awkward. Chuck was probably right but what did that do to help her?

He moved closer to her, a look in his eyes that Jo couldn't quite read and made her shift on her feet. "You might be small but you can use that in your favor if you pay attention. You're looking for defense here right?"

Without warning he reached out and pushed her hard enough she stumbled back a couple steps, "What the hell Chuck, you're not helping you know."

He advanced on her and pushed her again, "Are you always going to let people walk on you? Are you going to let me push you around?" Chuck followed and pushed her a third time without waiting for an answer.

Whatever he was up to Jo didn't like it and she went on the defensive, backing away from him but Chuck was quicker than he looked. Even Mako chimed in but it didn't stop him from advancing on her and pushing her around, almost hard enough to knock her down now.

Jo growled and she back away from him, "Damn it Chuck knock it off. This isn't funny."

"You know I thought you would be tougher than this, thought my dad found a decent woman to stand with him but I guess not because what I see here? Ha," he laughed as he came at her again.

A low growl escaped Jo and this time instead of backing away from Chuck she used one of the grab moves Mako had shown her. Twisting her body to the side when his hand made contact with her shoulder Jo trapped his hand against her, wrapped her free hand around his arm and used his momentum to carry him through a flip.

Following him down Jo landed a knee on Chuck's chest, a hand on his throat. It hit her then she accomplished the move and surprise spread across her face. She realized she was suffocating Chuck and jumped off him, "Oh my god."

After a fit of coughing Chuck laughed, "There it is. See you just have to reach the right level with some people." He chuckled and let Jo help him up off the floor, "Sorry I was a jerk, after watching you though I figured I might as well try."

With a shake of her head Jo looked at him for a moment, "You are crazy."

"Well… yeah I suppose. Like I said though, you're a scrapper sort of fighter. If you want I can show you a thing or two, hell dad could too you know," he said before glancing at Mako. "Sorry Ms. Mori nothing against your style of fighting, just doesn't work for everyone."

The woman smiled, bowing her head brief, "No offense taken Mr. Hansen. You would seem to be right for a change." That said she bowed her head again, collected her boots and disappeared from the room.

Jo laughed softly, "Sometimes the spunk that comes out of that girl surprises me. And she's just here restoring jaegers."

With a shrug Chuck turned his attention back to Jo, "So do you want my help?"

Giving him her attention Jo stood quietly for a moment considering that. He seemed very… rough about the way he taught but it would probably be the most beneficial for her. He'd already proven he could get results. Jo might as well give him a chance, she did want to have some confidence in her ability to defend herself.

The nod he received was hesitant but she wanted to learn and that won out in the end. Chuck didn't know why he was here but after watching her and Mako go a few rounds he'd known Jo wasn't going to learn much that way. Why he was getting involved was a mystery to him but he wasn't going to think too much about it now, she could use his help.

"I think you've taken enough of a beating today, why don't we start fresh tomorrow eh? Not here though, there's a boxing ring set up down on the third level and that should work for us. I'm not going to baby you because you're a girl," he said as he looked at her sternly.

Laughing Jo shook her head, "Oh god no, we wouldn't want that. I'll be there, think I know where you are talking about. Early?"

Chuck grinned, "Yeah. See ya then." And he was gone just as quickly as he'd appeared.

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After two weeks of bouts with Chuck Jo was bruised and sore in places she didn't know could be bruised or sore. She stripped off her clothes and stood in front of the mirror only to shake her head at the image before her. Just the workouts with Chuck had tightened a few places though you could hardly tell considering the bruising.

Chuck was not easy on her, didn't pull his punches at all. Jo both appreciated and hated him for it. He'd explained this way if someone did get a hit in on her she wouldn't be as shocked by it. Jo supposed that made sense on some level but her body didn't like it, protested it very loudly these days.

With a groan Jo sank into the steaming hot tub of water hoping to find some relief. As she settled in, her dark hair piled atop her head, the bathroom door opened. Herc had only asked once about the bruises but Jo hadn't told him much. Since then he'd left well enough alone.

Both Jo and Chuck had decided Herc would not like his son's methods. They'd agreed not to tell him about the training. Jo told Herc she was being taught to defend herself but left out by who because Chuck didn't need his father harassing him about what was going on. Jo was learning, quickly, and she wanted to keep at it for a bit longer. Herc would demand they stop, he hadn't meant for Jo to get quite such a thorough training but she was certainly getting that.

It only took a moment for him to move to the edge of the tube, "That looks relaxing."

Opening her eyes she couldn't keep the grin from curling one side of her mouth, "It is. Would you like to join me?"

The speed at which he got undressed made Jo chuckle. One moment he was dressed and the next he wasn't. Scooting forward in the tub, which wasn't a huge tub but would manage, she felt the water shift as Herc joined her. After a moment of awkward adjustments they found a comfortable position to sit, Jo's back to Herc's chest.

Using the wash cloth Jo had brought into the tub Herc dunked it into the water and started carefully running it over her arms, "So how did today go for you?"

Jo made a soft sound of appreciation as she leaned her head back against his shoulder and closed her eyes, "Well enough. I'm starting to win almost as much as I lose. And you?"

Grumbling Herc shook his head, "Suits causing more trouble for us, trainees completely fumbling things up, and coming home to a girlfriend who's all beat up."

"Hey you suggested this," she countered leaving out her surprise over his using the word girlfriend to describe her.

Herc glanced at her from the corner of his narrowed eyes, "You know damn well 'this' is not what I meant Jo. This… is like torture or something."

Putting a hand over his Jo opened her eyes to look at him, "Herc don't. I'm learning. After your suggested it I saw the good behind it. I don't want to be helpless anymore. I like learning how to fight. Beside at least this way is toughening me up a little while we go along."

"I don't think you need any toughening up my dear," he said with a soft note of lament in his voice.

Jo sat up a little and turned to look at him over her shoulder, "Herc, this is a good thing. I'm not going to break like a China doll. Don't treat me like I am."

He looked into her grey eyes for a moment and then sighed, "Alright alright, you win." He wrapped his arms around her carefully and pulled her so she was leaning back against him again. Herc didn't like the way this was going but he supposed he did see her point. Now he just hoped she would never have to put such skills to use while he was around.

Dipping his head Herc kissed her neck as his hands found better things to do than just wash her. Jo grinned as she felt one of his hands cup her breast, "Mmm, you know that's one place that doesn't hurt."

"How about here," his other hand sank lower along her belly and slipped between her thighs to brush against her.

Jo gasp softly and then remembered he'd asked her a question, "no, there doesn't hurt… feels really good right now."

He nipped her neck as his fingers slide against her flesh, "yeah? How about now?" Slipping inside her Herc felt her arch against him and couldn't stop himself from rubbing his hard length against her.

"Herc… the tub isn't going to work for this," she protested breathlessly but didn't ask him to stop what he was doing. Jo bit her lower lip as she struggled to hold still as he fingered her all the while wanting to rock against his hand and against the hardness she felt behind her.

At her ear he chuckled, "Where's the adventurous girl hiding?" He nipped her earlobe and growled softly as she moved against him finally.

A challenge was the quickest way to push Jo and he knew it. Despite her sore body she rubbed her behind against the stiff member she felt against her briefly. Jo slowly lifted herself up enough to be sitting in his lap as she looked over her shoulder at him, heat in her grey eyes. The moment she pulled his hand out of the way and sank down on him they both groaned in pleasure.


End file.
